Ambulance driver called me a w****r
Discussion
Red Devil said:
Ray Luxury-Yacht said:
I can't really comment upon the OP's situation too much, as I wasn't there. However, for what it's worth - despite what you might think about me having to negotiate stationary vehicles - I would really rather that when you spot me coming up behind you, that you just stop, whatever the road and conditions. I've posted this before on here.
Does 'whatever' include stamping on the anchors and coming to a standstill within 5 metres of a central traffic island like the dozy bint ahead of me a couple of months ago? She left the ambulance driver with nowhere to go. Going offside the other side of the island simply wasn't an option on that occasion. I'm not trolling here either, but calling her a 'dozy bint' is a wee bit aggressive, isn't it? We're supposed to be highly-trained road-users, professionals...and when we're on a blue-light run, we're concentrating 100% and using all our skills to make safe progress. We're not (or shouldn't be) thinking of anything other than arriving alive, and are driving without any distractions.
The people we come up behind in cars however, are not concentrating at all. They probably have the radio on, so won't easily hear a siren behind them until the last minute - and are probably thinking about work, home, the kids, dinner....and the last thing they expect is a huge, noisy, bright emergency vehicle bearing down on them.
They suddenly see us in their rear-view mirror when we're almost on top of them, all the lights going - have an immediate reaction of terror snapping them out of their daydream - and do something immediately reactive like slamming their brakes on - without even considering things like the proximity of traffic islands. After all, they're not professional drivers, so why would we expect them to do anything otherwise?
Our job is to then calmly continue to negotiate round them, whilst resisting the temptation to get annoyed, or call them names. After all, if we do that, it's our blood pressure which gets elevated, which is the last thing we need.
They're just standard MOP's, aren't they? Sometimes I think that some emergency response drivers expect waaayyy too much from MOP's.
Anyway as I said, not trolling you, just maybe explaining how I see it. Peace and love!
They're just
It sounds counter intuitive as any ambulance will arrive later having had to come to a dead stop behind a car, and, in this instance, may cause quite a hazard for oncoming traffic as it overtakes a stopped car, but we just have to take Ray's word on this. This is a calm experienced pro's advice... Or we all get PH Pro stickers and then they know they are in good hands as we boot it to the nearest lay-by so as not to hinder them
a guy in Bradford was jailed for chasing down an ambulance to a hospital and then actually blocking the rear doors with his car, thus trapping the patient in.
the ambulance might have clipped his mirror (from memory- I'm trying not to google!) but still- he could have followed to the hospital and sorted it in a timely manner !!
the ambulance might have clipped his mirror (from memory- I'm trying not to google!) but still- he could have followed to the hospital and sorted it in a timely manner !!
Ken Figenus said:
It sounds counter intuitive as any ambulance will arrive later having had to come to a dead stop behind a car, and, in this instance, may cause quite a hazard for oncoming traffic as it overtakes a stopped car, but we just have to take Ray's word on this. This is a calm experienced pro's advice... Or we all get PH Pro stickers and then they know they are in good hands as we boot it to the nearest lay-by so as not to hinder them
How about if the car doesn't stop dead and comes to a gradual stop? And also it doesn't stop in the middle of the road but against the kerb?This would give the AmboDriver sufficient space to (hopefully) go down the middle of the road between both sets of traffic, thereby avoding the need for anybody to heroically boot it for the next X miles....
Countdown said:
How about if the car doesn't stop dead and comes to a gradual stop? And also it doesn't stop in the middle of the road but against the kerb?
This would give the AmboDriver sufficient space to (hopefully) go down the middle of the road between both sets of traffic, thereby avoding the need for anybody to heroically boot it for the next X miles....
Don't say 'kerb' near my wheels! But seriously yes - basic common sense prevails in all situations - even ones without a kerb...This would give the AmboDriver sufficient space to (hopefully) go down the middle of the road between both sets of traffic, thereby avoding the need for anybody to heroically boot it for the next X miles....
I have a relative who works in the Ambulance station in Battersea, London. One of his more challenging calls 2 Christmas' ago, as the first responder on the scene, was to ascertain the female driver was dead in an RTA with the tree. She was very so then look for the absent head of a young child who was NOT in a child seat in the rear of the car; assumed to be the drivers child. Police also arrived shortly afterwards and took control of the situation and then had to go and pass the news to the family....!!
Whilst appreciating that you thought you were taking the right cause of action, there was clearly a different school of thought with the Ambulance driver (without seeing the whole picture, I can't possibly reliably comment).
My point is this; the Ambulance drivers are in arguably one of the highest stress jobs around and they are only human. You don't know what he had come from or where he was going to that day. He could've just been a t**t from birth; who knows. Everyone has shi**y days occasionally, this just could've been one of his (I'd wager a shi**y day as a paramedic is a whole different level to most of us have a bad day at work).
Whilst appreciating that you thought you were taking the right cause of action, there was clearly a different school of thought with the Ambulance driver (without seeing the whole picture, I can't possibly reliably comment).
My point is this; the Ambulance drivers are in arguably one of the highest stress jobs around and they are only human. You don't know what he had come from or where he was going to that day. He could've just been a t**t from birth; who knows. Everyone has shi**y days occasionally, this just could've been one of his (I'd wager a shi**y day as a paramedic is a whole different level to most of us have a bad day at work).
My last experience with an Ambulance driver happened a few months back.
I'd just come over a level crossing when the lights began to flash behind me. Traffic was already at standstill on the other side of the road waiting for the barriers to go up. Approaching the queue on the opposite side to me is an Ambulance on blues, now I realise he needs to be at the front of this queue when the barriers lift, but he's clearly seen they have only just gone down. He can also clearly see me coming towards him.
Had he waited a nano second I'd have been past the traffic queue and he could have proceeded to the front, but oh no, thats too easy for this guy. I end up on the pavement to let him past.
He couldn't go anywhere but decided to bully me out of the way anyway. He completely failed to read the road ahead. Whether that be because of a bad day or because thats how he drives normally I don't know.
I'd just come over a level crossing when the lights began to flash behind me. Traffic was already at standstill on the other side of the road waiting for the barriers to go up. Approaching the queue on the opposite side to me is an Ambulance on blues, now I realise he needs to be at the front of this queue when the barriers lift, but he's clearly seen they have only just gone down. He can also clearly see me coming towards him.
Had he waited a nano second I'd have been past the traffic queue and he could have proceeded to the front, but oh no, thats too easy for this guy. I end up on the pavement to let him past.
He couldn't go anywhere but decided to bully me out of the way anyway. He completely failed to read the road ahead. Whether that be because of a bad day or because thats how he drives normally I don't know.
SistersofPercy said:
He can also clearly see me coming towards him.
Had he waited a nano second I'd have been past the traffic queue and he could have proceeded to the front, but oh no, thats too easy for this guy. I end up on the pavement to let him past.
Perhaps he was wondering why you were still driving towards him if you've seen him ?Had he waited a nano second I'd have been past the traffic queue and he could have proceeded to the front, but oh no, thats too easy for this guy. I end up on the pavement to let him past.
Or maybe he was expecting the stationary traffic on this side of the crossing to move over a little bit as well, so he could go through the middle and you wouldn't have had to go onto the pavement. I guess we'll never know.
You'd be suprised by the amount of people that 'play chicken' with a big ambulance with flashing headlights and lots of blue lights that comes at them.
Happens pretty much on a daily basis. You're about to overtake a few cars, they all pull over and stop, you move into the oncoming lane, the traffic can clearly see you, and all they have to do is slow down a little bit, they don't even have to pull over, but some will still drive right at you without reducing speed, and then suddenly realise they now need to stop.
Bear in mind that most of those decisions are made in a split second, ('if i go here, that car can go there, those 2 can move there, and then if he stops i can fit through that gap', but it only needs 1 of those others cars to not cooperate or make a different move, and things go not as planned).
Edited by Medic-one on Tuesday 4th October 18:02
Medic-one said:
Perhaps he was wondering why you were still driving towards him if you've seen him ?
Because I had nowhere else to go. I had a queue of traffic to my left and houses to my right. The barrier had closed seconds behind me. Unless I could muster vertical takeoff it was impossible to do anything other than get out of the bottleneck.Medic-one said:
Or maybe he was expecting the stationary traffic on this side of the crossing to move over a little bit as well, so he could go through the middle and you wouldn't have had to go onto the pavement. I guess we'll never know.
Again, nowhere for them to go either. No pavement on that side and buildings to the kerb.Medic-one said:
You'd be suprised by the amount of people that 'play chicken' with a big ambulance with flashing headlights and lots of blue lights that comes at them.
Having seen a woman pull out of a side road and miss being sideswiped by a bright red fire engine by millimetres, I believe you completely. I imagine though there are good and bad drivers as in any vocation. In my case the sensible thing would have been to just let me finish coming through. He couldn't go anywhere and remained waiting for the barriers for as far as I could see in my mirror.I do appreciate that it's difficult to explain the section of road, but I liken it to being 80% of the way through double parked cars when someone comes steaming towards you with nowhere to go.
In all these situations with oncoming traffic that "prevents" the ambulance from passing, if you stop, then I would hope that oncoming traffic sees the blues and also stops to allow the ambulance to pass safely. The oncoming shouldn't just be a constant stream, it is them that's causing any delay.
SistersofPercy said:
Medic-one said:
Perhaps he was wondering why you were still driving towards him if you've seen him ?
Because I had nowhere else to go. I had a queue of traffic to my left and houses to my right. The barrier had closed seconds behind me. Unless I could muster vertical takeoff it was impossible to do anything other than get out of the bottleneck.1) Why did you enter the level crossing?
2) Why did you feel it necessary to overtake the traffic queue?
KevinCamaroSS said:
If there was a traffic queue past the level crossing two things come to mind:
1) Why did you enter the level crossing?
2) Why did you feel it necessary to overtake the traffic queue?
1) The level crossing lights and sirens came on as I was exiting the crossing.1) Why did you enter the level crossing?
2) Why did you feel it necessary to overtake the traffic queue?
2) The traffic queue was on the other side of the road, going in the opposite direction.
SistersofPercy said:
1) The level crossing lights and sirens came on as I was exiting the crossing.
2) The traffic queue was on the other side of the road, going in the opposite direction.
Ahha, my assumption was that you are in the UK (because I am). Therefore a queue on your left is going the same direct as you. Apologies for my error.2) The traffic queue was on the other side of the road, going in the opposite direction.
KevinCamaroSS said:
Ahha, my assumption was that you are in the UK (because I am). Therefore a queue on your left is going the same direct as you. Apologies for my error.
No Kevin, my apologies. I am in the UK, the queue was on my right and I typed left instead :blush:In my very poor defence I have this stinking cold/throat/cough thing thats doing the rounds and have felt crap all week.
Ray Luxury-Yacht said:
Red Devil said:
Ray Luxury-Yacht said:
I can't really comment upon the OP's situation too much, as I wasn't there. However, for what it's worth - despite what you might think about me having to negotiate stationary vehicles - I would really rather that when you spot me coming up behind you, that you just stop, whatever the road and conditions. I've posted this before on here.
Does 'whatever' include stamping on the anchors and coming to a standstill within 5 metres of a central traffic island like the dozy bint ahead of me a couple of months ago? She left the ambulance driver with nowhere to go. Going offside the other side of the island simply wasn't an option on that occasion. I'm not trolling here either, but calling her a 'dozy bint' is a wee bit aggressive, isn't it?
However that wouldn't be directly relevant to the topic we are discussing.Ray Luxury-Yacht said:
They suddenly see us in their rear-view mirror when we're almost on top of them, all the lights going - have an immediate reaction of terror snapping them out of their daydream - and do something immediately reactive like slamming their brakes on - without even considering things like the proximity of traffic islands. After all, they're not professional drivers, so why would we expect them to do anything otherwise?
No they aren't, but is it too much to expect a basic level of competence? Driving around in a daydream or an insulated bubble of distraction suggests they might be lacking any.Ray Luxury-Yacht said:
Anyway as I said, not trolling you, just maybe explaining how I see it. Peace and love!
Amen to that. 
Someone said ambulance drivers are "highly skilled drivers" - 
I don't know what planet you're on but it isn't this one. The ambulance drivers in Leeds are thick as f
k and I've had run-ins with them before.
Kirkstall Rd out of Leeds is a d/c with a camera monitored bus lane along the nearside. I was in the n/s lane in slow moving queue up to the viaduct lights when this nob appears on blues forcing his way between the 2 lanes of traffic making everyone part to the left and right. I moved over as close to the bus lane dividing lane as I could whilst positioning myself offset to the nearest car on my offside to create a gap for him to go through, but oh no, that wasn't good enough and he sat there on my rear bumper papping his horn whilst his female colleague screamed out of the window for me to move into the bus lane. I told them both to fk off, stop being so fking retarded and drive down the empty bus lane yourself. I already have a FPN ticket to my name for cutting across the bus lane in the past and there's no way I'm getting another one because the thick tt won't use his brain.
On another occasion I was somewhere else in Leeds in my truck waiting at a set of lights which had a red light camera on them and the ambo tries to squeeze between me and the offside kerb but can't get through because of railings. The bloke driving it starts turning the siren on and off and papping his horn gesticulating for me to drive through the red light and mouthed a bunch of profanities when I refused. They're supposed to be trained to not force other road users to carry out illegal manoeuvres to accommodate them and there was nothing preventing him from driving round the other side of the island like you'd do if you had a brain.
And don't get me started on the ambulances on the M6 15 miles either side of the Kendal turn off that sit in lane 3 doing a maximum 50mph in the dead of the night and then get a face on with lots of angry light flashing when you undertake them. Trying getting in the empty lane 1 then dhead !
I don't know what planet you're on but it isn't this one. The ambulance drivers in Leeds are thick as fk and I've had run-ins with them before.Kirkstall Rd out of Leeds is a d/c with a camera monitored bus lane along the nearside. I was in the n/s lane in slow moving queue up to the viaduct lights when this nob appears on blues forcing his way between the 2 lanes of traffic making everyone part to the left and right. I moved over as close to the bus lane dividing lane as I could whilst positioning myself offset to the nearest car on my offside to create a gap for him to go through, but oh no, that wasn't good enough and he sat there on my rear bumper papping his horn whilst his female colleague screamed out of the window for me to move into the bus lane. I told them both to f
k off, stop being so fking retarded and drive down the empty bus lane yourself. I already have a FPN ticket to my name for cutting across the bus lane in the past and there's no way I'm getting another one because the thick tt won't use his brain.On another occasion I was somewhere else in Leeds in my truck waiting at a set of lights which had a red light camera on them and the ambo tries to squeeze between me and the offside kerb but can't get through because of railings. The bloke driving it starts turning the siren on and off and papping his horn gesticulating for me to drive through the red light and mouthed a bunch of profanities when I refused. They're supposed to be trained to not force other road users to carry out illegal manoeuvres to accommodate them and there was nothing preventing him from driving round the other side of the island like you'd do if you had a brain.
And don't get me started on the ambulances on the M6 15 miles either side of the Kendal turn off that sit in lane 3 doing a maximum 50mph in the dead of the night and then get a face on with lots of angry light flashing when you undertake them. Trying getting in the empty lane 1 then d
head ! Ray Luxury-Yacht said:
Hello. Ambulance driving Paramedic here
I can't really comment upon the OP's situation too much, as I wasn't there. However, for what it's worth - despite what you might think about me having to negotiate stationary vehicles - I would really rather that when you spot me coming up behind you, that you just stop, whatever the road and conditions. I've posted this before on here
I'm the opposite. I can't really comment upon the OP's situation too much, as I wasn't there. However, for what it's worth - despite what you might think about me having to negotiate stationary vehicles - I would really rather that when you spot me coming up behind you, that you just stop, whatever the road and conditions. I've posted this before on here
Stop, if there is somewhere to stop safely and where you are not blocking the way. Otherwise, keep going.....at a safe speed.....until you can stop.
OP, there is never any need for a driver of an emergency vehicle to make rude gestures at members of the public. You should call the Trust for your area and let them know about this driver's attitude, it is unacceptable.
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