This used to be a simple question. An ambulance was a red or white station wagon with a siren and a light on the roof. When one was behind you, if the light was lit and rotating and the siren was blaring, you’d pull over and let them pass.
Now they have lights all over the place and the number of lights they flash varies.
I walked by a parked ambulance on the street recently and counted 47 light fixtures on the exterior. What fraction of them should you see blinking before pulling over?
One datapoint: a couple times now I’ve seen ambulances with about 5 to 10 lights flashing, but no siren, pull into convenience store parking lots so the crew could go in and unhurredly buy drinks or other items. This makes me think that it isn’t necessary to pull over just because there is at least one flashing.
Another datapoint: my infant grandson broke a night light fixture and drank the mysterious contents, which precipitated an ambulance coming and getting him and taking him to the hospital (which turned out fine). His mother reports that while driving him they had “about a third” of the lights flashing, and no siren. I guess this means about 15 lights. This makes me think it becomes necessary to pull over when some unknown substantial minority of the lights are flashing.
Is it some kind of sliding scale, where the easier it is to pull over, the fewer flashing lights you hold out for?
So far, I’m pulling over whenever any lights are flashing, but I notice other drivers don’t, and pulling over is itself a minor hazard too. What’s the recommended practice? Mid-Atlantic USA, f’rinstance?
I was under the impression that if there are lights or siren you ALWAYS pull over, if you can, or stay where you are so it can pass you if you can’t. Since when did this become an optional thing?
I agree that it is that simple. I don’t think I have ever seen what the OP is talking about but I have always understood that any light on means to pull over. I can’t imagine what additional light combinations would mean to the general public.
In Illinois, you’re required to slow down and pull over for lights–any lights–or siren, or both together. It’s not optional, and you’re not allowed the option of deciding “well, they only have half their lights flashing, so I don’t need to pull over.” I would imagine that “Mid-Atlantic” has the same rules, since most states seem to agree on the basic Rules of the Road. If you’ll give us a definite state, we’ll be happy to Google it for you.
“Pulling over” is only a safety hazard if you’re doing it wrong. You’re not supposed to immediately slam on the brakes and violently swerve into the right-hand or breakdown lane as soon as you spot an emergency vehicle with either lights or siren going. You’re supposed to slow down, look around, ascertain where the emergency vehicle is going and what its potential needs are, determine what the drivers around you are doing, and then pull over, carefully.
And…[channeling your mother]…Just because you see the other children NOT pulling over doesn’t mean YOU have to do it, too. If they all decided to jump off a 500-foot cliff, would you do that, too?
In recent years, I have noticed ambulances and police cars which have flashing lights but no siren. It has seemed to me that this occurs when the road is rather clear and/or cars are pulling over on their own with no need for the siren. My guess is that they only use the siren when they need it, out of concern for the local noise levels.
I think you should reduce your speed by the same percentage of flashing lights on the ambulance. So, if only half the lights are flashing, and you are going 30 MPH, you should slow to 15 MPH. If they wanted you to stop (100% speed reduction), they would let you know by using 100% of the lights.
This may be complicated, because you may have to count the number of total lights, count the number of flashing lights, and perform percentage calculation based upon your quick observations in your rear view mirror while driving. Maybe they should have a handy card you can put in your wallet, like a “tip calculator.”
Always give emergency vehicles the benefit of the doubt, what’s it gonna’ cost you, a few seconds? If you have reason to believe there’s abuse going on, report it, to the ambulance company, to the police, to your elected rep., or write a letter to the editor, but it’s not your place to ignore an emergency vehicle, for any reason.
Police may go w/o sirens for other reasons.
It’s a judgement call, but if there’s a divider, I’d say no. No divider, probably yes, as the emegency vehicle may need to get by traffic any way they can.
Better to err on the side of caution.
If the unit has on any light other than what the car company put on in the factory, you’re supposed to pull over. I drive lights only unless the patient is critical.
If the unit has any emergency light on and they’re not on an emergency run, they’re legally liable.
There is no sliding scale regarding the number of lights to use. I use them all, and the only time I’ve used less was late one night when driving in fog; the glare from the flashing strobe was blinding me.
I was taught in Drivers Ed that it’s not necessary to pull over if there’s a raised divider or median between the lanes. If no median, just painted lines, you pull over because they may need to drive over the median to avoid cars stopped at a red light, for example.
However, I’ve seen ambulances driver over a curbed, grassy median on a 4-lane highway because of a light - there was no other way to get around.
So I keep a sharp eye on the ambulance, and if it looks like it may need room, raised divider or no, I’ll slow down and prepare to stop.
And if I see any lights at all, I pull over.
Generally speaking, jurisdictions vary, but if you see red or blue, pull over. Many of those exterior lights are scene lights for lighting up next to an ambulance so you have light to work. In CA the only mandatory lighting for emergency vehicles was a single steady red light visitble for 1000 feet ahead.
I have heard of this happening once in my EMT days, the person in question was fired that day. It is a citable offense do do this.
At night general policy is to drop to lights only in residential areas or late night light traffic. This reduces complaints from the citizenry and avoids drawing a crowd to an already unhappy situation.
I hopped dividers in many circumstances, the same light that is blocking traffic ahead of you is usually preventing direct head on traffic the other way. Rule of thumb for us was…one cycle of lights but blocked, shut down and light back up when lights change, if its going to take 2+ cycles of lights to get through, find a way around, over curbs, through parking lots, whatever.
I can’t imagine sitting there counting the lights, while deciding whether or not to pull over. I see lights, I pull over. The only confusing thing is when I hear an approaching siren, and can’t tell where it’s coming from. In that case, I slow down and keep watching and listening.
Wife of a FF just wants to interject with one of his peeves. If an emergency vehicle is approaching from behind and you and your fellow motorists are stopped at a red light, it’s OK to drive into the intersection to get out of the damn way! Don’t worry, you won’t get a ticket!
Also, in his exeperince (although this may vary by department), if you don’t stop, or you’re on a freeway and don’t get out of the way like you’re supposed to, and the chief or senior man is in a bad mood, they’ll write down your license plate number and you’ll either get pulled over up the road to get a ticket or receive one in the mail.
In California, the relevant section of the Vehicle Code is Section 21806.
Section 21806 states:
21806. Upon the immediate approach of an authorized emergency
vehicle which is sounding a siren and which has *at least one lighted
lamp exhibiting red light * that is visible, under normal atmospheric
conditions, from a distance of 1,000 feet to the front of the
vehicle, the surrounding traffic shall, except as otherwise directed
by a traffic officer, do the following:
(a) (1) Except as required under paragraph (2), the driver of
every other vehicle shall yield the right-of-way and shall
immediately drive to the right-hand edge or curb of the highway,
clear of any intersection, and thereupon shall stop and remain
stopped until the authorized emergency vehicle has passed.
(2) A person driving a vehicle in an exclusive or preferential use
lane shall exit that lane immediately upon determining that the exit
can be accomplished with reasonable safety.
(b) The operator of every street car shall immediately stop the
street car, clear of any intersection, and remain stopped until the
authorized emergency vehicle has passed.
(c) All pedestrians upon the highway shall proceed to the nearest
curb or place of safety and remain there until the authorized
emergency vehicle has passed.
(italics mine)
There’s no “sliding scale” and no need to count lights. There’s also no automatic exemption for being on the other side of a physical barrier such as a “K-rail” or other division of lanes.
However, on this site, Lt. Ken Carpenter, commander of the Riverside Police Department Traffic Division says “The only exception is if the road’s a divided highway and you’re coming from the opposite direction, you don’t need to pull over.”
I’ve not been able to find anything in the Vehicle Code to back up the officer’s assertation.
