30/11/2024
What should I do if I'm at a red light and an emergency vehicle needs to get through?
We get asked this quite a lot so hopefully this explains.
Emergency 'blue light' vehicles have three exemptions in law. Speed limits, red lights and keep left signs.
If we are looking to make progress with blue lights and siren, we are asking you to let us through.
If possible, move over to somewhere safe and allow us past. There's no need to mount kerbs or verges or make sudden moves. We won't come past until we know you have seen us.
If you are at a red light and you can let us through, please do so but we don't want you to go through the red light, moving aside is fine but going through the light isn't. Doing so is an offence and you can be fined or receive points for doing it. Similarly, going through a red light and ending up in a collision could place liability on you.
If we can't make progress we do something called effective non-use. The lights stay on, the siren goes off. This is saying 'I'd like to come through when I can'.
Other helpful things to consider would be not stopping dead in your tracks. Often it's safer to keep going and let us pass in a safe place.
Stopping on a bend, the brow of a hill or directly opposite another vehicle makes it harder to get past too. In these situations it's better that you keep going until the road opens up and we can pass safely when we have a view.
The bottom line is, we don't want you to commit offences to let us through, just make it easier for us to get past if you can.
SD
