Enhanced fines for speeding, move-over law take effect on Nebraska roadways

For the first time in nearly 30 years, fines for speeding on Nebraska roadways are increasing across all categories.

Drivers ticketed for going between one and five mph over the speed limit will now be fined $50, up from $10 previously. At the other end of the spectrum, drivers caught speeding 36 mph or more over the speed limit will be fined $400, up from $300.

The definition of reckless driving has been expanded to include speeding violations of more than twice the posted limit.

Drivers will also now be required to change lanes when approaching stopped vehicles, pedestrians and cyclists along the road, if possible. The law also creates a new category of vulnerable road users, which includes cyclists and pedestrians.

Cait Dumas-Hein, the associate director for Bike Walk Nebraska, a group that advocated for the law, explained who qualifies.

“This is a road construction worker. This is a kid going to school. This is a mom with a stroller,” she said. “Instead of buzzing by or trying to allocate only three feet, the law now requires us to change lanes, which will create a lot of safety and ease for everybody involved.”

State troopers have issued more high-speed tickets in recent years. Pedestrian and bicyclist fatalities also increased in Nebraska in 2024, according to a Bike Walk Nebraska report. Dumas-Hein hopes the increased fines and move-over law will facilitate a decline in future years.

The provisions are all part of LB530, a public safety omnibus bill from Sen. Kathleen Kauth that lawmakers passed in May.

Like most other state laws passed recently, it takes effect Sept. 3, which is 90 days following the end of the legislative session.

“We are working to make Nebraska’s highways as safe as we can,” said Nebraska Department of Transportation Director Vicki Kramer. “The provisions in LB530 help us reach that goal. Of course, highway safety ultimately depends on each of us making the right choices every time we get behind the wheel.”

NDOT has also been given authority to temporarily reduce speed limits during traffic congestion, bad weather, and other emergencies.