Moving aside for emergency services

[jondude]

Was on the way to Canvey Island in Essex recently, dark and raining.....police car soon behind me with lights and sirens going. To my left is a hard kerb then fields, oncoming traffic is heavy and moving at speed. (Single file in each direction)

I was driving around 50 so started to slow while indicating left and hoping there would be a break in the kerb to pull over but the drivers in front carried on and the police car did not slip by.....then suddenly the immediate car in front did an emergency stop, so did I and so did those in the oncoming lane......cop car edges past.

What would be the preferred course of action here?

[Schmeeky]

I'd say you did all you could - indicator to let the PO know you've seen him, and slowing to let him by easier.

I always get antsy when there are blue lights nearby, I've seen so many people react in entirely unexpected ways. For example, PO on blues going down normal two way road with no traffic ahead of him, so a lady coming the other way does a full-on emergency stop, very nearly ended up with a truck in her boot...

[jondude]

Schmeeky said:

I'd say you did all you could - indicator to let the PO know you've seen him, and slowing to let him by easier.

I always get antsy when there are blue lights nearby, I've seen so many people react in entirely unexpected ways. For example, PO on blues going down normal two way road with no traffic ahead of him, so a lady coming the other way does a full-on emergency stop, very nearly ended up with a truck in her boot...

Thanks and yes, agree it can be a bit tense at times.

[rallye101]

Had exactly the same thing happen a few months ago to me, just put my hazards on and floored it before pulling into the next lay-by..had a ''thumbs up'' from the chap in the passenger seat so guess they appreciated it..

[donkmeister]

On my commute I pass a hospital near a fire station. The authorities installed slopey kerbs on the outer shoulders of a 2+2-lane dual carriageway so you can drive up when the inevitable blue lights appear behind during rush hour. On the inner shoulders the kerb is high and there is a railing so nowhere to go. The number of people refusing to slowly drive up the slopey kerb is ridiculous!

[henrycrun]

and when they've passed, stay vigilant cos there could be another one coming.

[Chrisgr31]

My wife regularly gets to travel in an ambulance as a midwife, when they are transferring ladies in labor to the obstetrics hospital. She says they always try and avoid using blue lights were they can because the ride is uncomfortable as the driver cant guarantee what traffic is going to do. You'll have people suddenly stop, or they'll stop adjacent to a traffic island, or both oncoming traffic and the traffic going there way stops leaving no gap.

I suspect it's easier for a police car as they are narrower but fire engines and ambulances are wider so on many roads they just need overtaking gaps created.

[TTmonkey]

More to the point... what's the best practice when you come up behind an ambulance in lane three with blues on struggling to do more than 55mph in a headwind.....

Flash them to pull over or undertake...?





Just kidding before anyone has a hissy fit. Although I did see an ambulance in lane three this morning going the opposite direction with four or five cars right up behind them...

[Schmeeky]

Good call Henry.
I normally drive with my roof down, so can hear them a long way off. I do however find it difficult to gauge what direction they are coming from, which can make planning harder.

[shovelheadrob]

There's no limits to the stupid moves people make when reacting to emergency services, the best thing anyone can do is to continue to make progress & if there's room move over to allow them to pass unencumbered. If everyone slows or stops in stupid places the emergency services get delayed. Fortunately emergency services drivers are trained to anticipate most situations.

[LukeSi]

I'll either pull over close to the kerb or if it is possible wait until where I stop leaves plenty of room.
I'll never bump up a kerb or leave the road and risk damaging my car but I will always ensure I leave plenty of room for them to get past.

[zetec]

If I am correct the road the OP was on is policed by average speed cameras. Obviously I wouldn’t want to hold up the emergency services, but neither would I want to bump my car up a raised kerb. If I was to floor it, could I use the reason that I didn’t want to hold up an emergency vehicle as a defence??

[spookly]

I don't understand why it would be tense. If there's nowhere for you to go then just keep moving. If you can safely get out of their way then do so. It's not rocket surgery. If I can't safely go anywhere to let them by then they'll have to wait, particularly if the law is going to continue to be an ass and prosecute people for things like crawling over the line at a red light to let them through.

[Hackney]

henrycrun said:

and when they've passed, stay vigilant cos there could be another one coming.

Or the increasingly common "unmarked" chaser car(s)

[jondude]

spookly said:

I don't understand why it would be tense. If there's nowhere for you to go then just keep moving. If you can safely get out of their way then do so. It's not rocket surgery. If I can't safely go anywhere to let them by then they'll have to wait, particularly if the law is going to continue to be an ass and prosecute people for things like crawling over the line at a red light to let them through.

Think for me there it was the mix of rain and dark, meaning the police car appeared inches from my bumper and the sirens were loud....plus yes, wanting to do the right thing and get out the way but all I am seeing is kerb on the left! Fair point about helpfulness not always being shown in reverse by the authorities.

[Gareth79]

In a thread a while ago, a member on here who was a paramedic/ambulance driver said the most helpful thing to do was just stop (just not in an obviously dangerous place) and they will figure it out.

[Riley Blue]

fellows4 said:

TTmonkey said:

More to the point... what's the best practice when you come up behind an ambulance in lane three with blues on struggling to do more than 55mph in a headwind....

This happened to me once. I passed an ambulance on a dual carriageway doing about 60mph (I was doing 80mph) and as I passed him he put his lights on. I slowed to 70 to let him pass on the inside but he never did. I waited at him at the roundabout so he didn't have to overtake me when the road merged to single lane but in fact got stuck behind him as he was doing less than 50 in a 50. I didn't dare overtake him at the next overtaking lane but it did leave me feeling a little frustrated.

Sometimes patients are carried for whom a smooth ride is more important than a fast one.

[Ken Figenus]

Yes can someone who drives with the blues and twos let us know pls?

I had exactly the same with a police car behind yesterday - straight fast road with nowhere to pull in and stop and LOADS of oncoming. Upped it to 65 whilst looking for somewhere to pull over or a gap in the oncoming traffic where I could drop down and let him past. But we hit a few other cars and they all immediately braked to a stop in the carriageway. Police car was now doing zero miles per hours and waiting for a sizeable gap in the 60mph oncoming traffic to allow him to pass 5 stationary cars.

I just wondered what he'd have been thinking?

[carreauchompeur]

Responding on rural a roads is difficult, far more so IMO than in town as the speeds can be much higher.

For me, I’d prefer for cars to slow down if possible in a predictable manner whilst I present the car to the offside and hope for the oncoming traffic to open a gap for me to pass. A lot of the time round here the locals are somewhat bloody minded and just carry on at their normal speed, I was particularly unimpressed with a chap recently who was doing 30 through a relatively narrow 2 lane bit of road and expected me to overtake him, if he’d have just slowed to a stop it would have made a very sketchy overtake easier.

So yeah, don’t panic and gently bring the speed down when you’re not on a blind corner!

[pavarotti1980]

Chrisgr31 said:

My wife regularly gets to travel in an ambulance as a midwife, when they are transferring ladies in labor to the obstetrics hospital. She says they always try and avoid using blue lights were they can because the ride is uncomfortable as the driver cant guarantee what traffic is going to do. You'll have people suddenly stop, or they'll stop adjacent to a traffic island, or both oncoming traffic and the traffic going there way stops leaving no gap.

I suspect it's easier for a police car as they are narrower but fire engines and ambulances are wider so on many roads they just need overtaking gaps created.

When do you see fire enginies slowing down?

They are coming through no matter how it happens