We do this down here in the south. Anyone know where and how it started? Is it done traditionally where y’all are? Is it against the law anywhere?
Thanks
Q
I drive to work along a much-used route to the Necroplis. Here, they show they are processing to a funeral by having their lights on. I acknowledge it by passing at a dignified speed, not crossing into their lane and never giving the finger.
Or darting in and out between the cars if you’re a jogger, right?
Q
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- Back like 15 years ago, a long-time buddy of mine (a long time already back then) with parents from Tennessee pulled over and stopped for a procession once and commented colorfully how disrespectful it was of other drivers not to do so. I have lived in central IL pretty much my whole concious life and I said that I had never ever heard of such a thing–the bit about allowing the procession (with headlights on) continue through stoplights I knew, but that was it. …It would appear to be more of a small-town thing; doesn’t sound like it would go over well in the big city.
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- Back like 15 years ago, a long-time buddy of mine (a long time already back then) with parents from Tennessee pulled over and stopped for a procession once and commented colorfully how disrespectful it was of other drivers not to do so. I have lived in central IL pretty much my whole concious life and I said that I had never ever heard of such a thing–the bit about allowing the procession (with headlights on) continue through stoplights I knew, but that was it. …It would appear to be more of a small-town thing; doesn’t sound like it would go over well in the big city.
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It happens in my medium-sized suurban town, and I have seen many near-accidents caused by it (and I have had to leap out of the way of cars, myself).
It may have been a nice tradition 100 years ago, before automobiles and traffic signals, but its time has passed. Why should one funeral lead to four or five more funerals?
AFAIK unless the police are involved with the funeral all vehicles must follow the law and stop for red lights etc. There is no law that I know of that states you must stop or otherwise do anything differently.
I once encountered the dumbest motocarde…on the freaking freeway. This is stupid for a hundred different reasons, one of them is doing 2/3 the speed limit on a busy highway is both rude and dangerous. In that case, I didn’t care, I proceded to cut through the line (they had taken the middle lane of a 3 lane highway and the highway split up a head, cars needed to pass through the line). Why the hell can’t these people just take the regular roads? It’s not like they were going faster than normal road speeds…sheesh.
I am from a very small town in the South. Most if not all vehicles not involved in the funeral procession pull to the side of the road and stop until the last car has passed. Also, when I was a teenager we would ride around the “main drag” in town on Friday and Saturday nights. If people were at the funeral home, we would actually slow down and lower the volume on the car stereo. In Houston however, this could not happen. Actually, I have heard of motorcycle cops being run over while stopping traffic for funeral processions going through an intersection.
When my dad died, I called to have all of the utilities turned off. The lady that answered the phone called by my first name and told me how sorry she was.
When my parents moved from the U.S. to Canada, they thought it was quite charming that other cars (in both directions) would pull over to the side for a funeral motorcade. This was a gesture of respect andhad nothing to do with getting out of the way.
I haven’t seen it in about 20 years.
(But then at a recent funeral some putz was wearing a baseball cap in the church, so it’s probably that good manners are fading out.)
Also, when I was last in a funeral motorcade, all the cars had special flag things to show they were a part of the procession. There was no police escort, but there were no problems at all going through red lights etc. (This was one very popular lady and the church was standing room only – the procession was huge and the cars went on for blocks!) Again, all the cars had bright-and-obvious, but austere “FUNERAL” signs that were clearly visible.
Here in Toronto, I highly doubt everyone would co-operate without a police escort to direct traffic.
I had to wait at a green light today while the motorcycle officers stopped all traffic for a procession. What’s up with that? Can I hire some guys with leather suits and flashing lights while I’m alive and ride through town non-stop?
No disrespect intended, but those folks aren’t in any hurry–why can’t they stop for the lights like everybody else?
The problem is that some motorcades are longer than the lights – it wouldn’t do well if half the cars made it through and the other half got lost behind them because they had to stop and wait.
Think of a motorcade as a train and you don’t want to unhitch half the cars and screw up the whole thing.
Oh, and FWIW, if you could get the city to issue you a permit for a specific route (probably a few thousand dollars), and you had the money to hire some Pay Duty police officers (another few thousand), then yes, you could have them escort you around non-stop.
(This is kinda the process they use when shooting films on location, but if you’re just the average sitizen you probably won’t be getting a permit.)
If there are any laws regarding funeral processions, they would be determined on a state by state basis.
In NJ, e.g., there are no laws giving privileges to FPs. They have to obey all the laws. That being said, funeral directors will take liberties and use the hearse to block an intercession until all traffic stops, and then procede with the procession in tow. If some driver who has the green decides to simply plow into them, it would not be that driver’s fault, but the person in procession who technically ran the red light.
NJ has too much traffic and too many deaths (being the most densely populated state) to pull over for processions. They have to get by like all other vehicles.
It’s common now in these times of daytime running lights for funeral procession to put their bright (country) lights on to indicate they’re in a FP.
Peace.
When I go, transport me in an ice cream truck with little bells playing “When the Saints Go Marching In.”
Florida law
http://www.flsenate.gov/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&Search_String=&URL=Ch0316/SEC1974.HTM&Title=->2002->Ch0316->Section%201974
In Lancashire, England, where I live, it is considered disrespectful to overtake a funeral procession,so the procession gets longer and longer. However, manners are changing and I don’t know whether this happens throughout the region or in other parts of Britain.
It’s common in most f the UK to Tricia - I’ve seen it done in the midlands & Wales & down south too, but this idea of pulling over to the side horrifies me - they go slower than other cars anyway. If you’re in front of them & you pull over & let them past, you’re going to be stuck behind them for ages.
And this running red lights thing just plain scares me - I’d never heard of it before, it’s not in the Kansas driver’s handbook & if not for this thread, the first I knew of it would be when some moron whacked into the side of my car & then claimed he could because his headlights were on & he was on the way to a funeral - more likely to be two of them if you ask me ;). Not to mention Kansas’s delightful policy of it not mattering who caused the accident (equal blame - the equivalent of the insurance company going knock for knock in the UK), each person’s insurance pays for it, so good drivers get penalised for bad ones & the idea’s a complete nightmare!
I have seen a funeral cortege doing 60mph or more down the moteorway before - I thought that was neat (& my mom says she’s leaving instructions in her will/with friends & family for the cars to go full speed & not hold anyone up too :D).