Should I let an ambulance with sirens on get by me on the road AND lose MY driving licence???

Question

I've been driving for just over a year and if i accumalate six penalty points on my licence i get automatically banned from driving.



ok.

well, six months ago I was stopped at a red light when an ambulance with sirens on needed to get by, I had two options, sit there and wait for the light to turn green or sneak throught the red light and let the poor sod in the ambulance get their treatment quicker!!!

Being the caring soul I am, I choose the latter option.

I got three points and a fine for going through a red light.

However, a couple of days ago (at exactly the same traffic lights weirdly), the exact same scenario occured with an ambulance with sirens on needed to get by.

I cant afford to lose my licence. I'm almost ashamed to say...I waited at the red light and held up the poor sod in the ambulance.

my question is...what has happened to this country when a citizen is punished for helping out a fellow citizen, and what would you have done in my situation???ta

Answer 1

From the Institure of Advanced Motorists (UK):

Deciding on what to do when you hear an emergency vehicle approaching can be a dilemma. Do you stay where you are and potentially block the progress of an emergency vehicle? Or do you move into a position that may put you or other road users at risk?

Unfortunately, some drivers over-react to emergency service vehicles travelling on "blues and twos" (blue lights and two-tone horns.) This is often because they don't hear or see the emergency vehicle until it is very close, and then take drastic action to get out of the way.

Don't panic and just brake. It's natural to want to react, but instinctively putting your brakes on immediately in front of an emergency vehicle doesn't help: It slows the progress of the emergency vehicle and jeopardises other road users. Think about where you are on the road. You should deal with the problem in the same way that you deal with any other potentially hazardous driving situation.

Observe and plan: what is the safest option available to you? You must sacrifice everything for safety, but never sacrifice safety for anything else - not even facilitating the progress of the emergency service vehicle.

Don't cross red traffic lights or speed to get out of the way. The emergency driver has training and legal exemptions that you don't have. Bus lanes and box junctions can be problems too, but let them resolve the law - not you.

If you are moving it may well be that you can continue at a reasonable pace and the emergency vehicle can follow you out of a pocket of congestion (such as a blocked one way system.) In that scenario, attempting to pull over too soon, or slow down, might just cause a needless obstruction and so hamper the progress of the emergency vehicle.

Indicate your intentions clearly. Don't pull in opposite other obstructions, such as centre bollards. If you are thinking about pulling over across a junction or outside a school or factory, you may be unwittingly preventing the emergency vehicle reaching its destination. And do think about where you are asking the emergency driver to overtake you - on the brow of a hill or a blind bend can be placing him or her in a very difficult position.

Answer 2

I have been at a red light when an ambulance came up. It is no problem. I admit a I was bit confused as there was no place to go but I moved my car slightly to the right about 5 feet and ahead about 12 as they came up. I should have just stayed still as the ambulance can and did simply pull over into the oncoming traffic lanes and go around us all. Everybody stops for an emergency vehicle including on coming cars at a stop light. If this really happened to you go before the judge or any judge and plead your case. In my state they can grant adjufication or some otehr such where the offense is wiped from your record. Judges are not blind idiots and there is recourse within the law. Defensive driving might help you keep your license. Since you have no other points yet what is the problem. I have not had a traffic citation in 13 years and only a few in 31 years of driving. I got most when I first started driving because I thought you had to punch the gas pedal to the floor often in order to get moving.Just obey all traffic laws unitl your record is cleared up.

Answer 3

You chose the lesser of two evils. You should explain this to a judge with this as the philosophical basis of your argument (if you are like most people, you will probably not choose to hire a lawyer for traffic court, and you shouldn't try to be a lawyer- just present a rational argument).

You are right. Laws are there as guidelines to serve society, not for us to obey blindly to the peril of others. You had a duty of care to exercise toward the person being served by the ambulance, and you were a good citizen. Go through the red tape, find the right person to explain yourself to, and clear your name.

Realize that many cities fund their activities, pay their teachers and police, and build parks primarily by collecting traffic penalties. Some towns are almost like Mafias and will squeeze you dry with little regard for justice, because after all, it's better than having a real mafia run the show. Good luck- perhaps the officer won't show up and your case will be dropped (and you will get off scott free both because you have a right to confront your accuser and because the prosecution has to provide a witness to support their claim).

Answer 4

Ok, I'm not a lawyer, but if you (a) did not have the
option of using right on red because of oncoming
traffic, and (b) you did not cause someone to
compromise their own safety who was crossing
the intersection from the right or left, I say you
have a good case. I assume you defended(or
tried) your action, and so how did the officer
rationalize writing you the ticket? You should go
to the hearing and tell this story to the judge.
The bad thing is, as in my state, you will get
the insurance points but might have the ticket
dropped. It's a serious crime, and should be
a serious offense to pass a school bus with
red flashing lights, but in my state emergency
vehicles don't get this protection through laws.
I'm on your side, if I have all the facts. Besides,
you are young they're gonna watch you like a
hawk anyway, and police are not indiscriminate
individuals, by any stretch.

Answer 5

You do not have to accept the ticket, how was it issued I suspect by a camera. I would just return the ticket with a letter to the effect that I had moved out of the way of a Ambulance. I would also state that if the ticket was pursued then their ambulances would be held at traffic lights until the light changed in future. Which country are you in, i only ask as some of the contributors are suggesting moving to the right, which in the UK would be totally at odds with the traffic laws.

Answer 6

I always move out the way for an ambulance with sirens on and also police and fire engines. You never know how many lives you might be endangering by sitting in their way. If at the traffic lights - which if sirens going then they should turn green - just edge slightly forward in front of the car alongside you. If a single lane and only you then very carefully edge out the way even if you have to touch the kerb. Emergency drivers are excellent and will get past you by some means.

Answer 7

You poor person!! I saw that happen the other day i was second in line at the traffic lights an amulance was coming so i moved behind an island in the middle of the road but the person at the front of the queue did the same thing as you did but they didn't go all the way through the lights, they went forwards just enough to let the ambulance pass then reversed back behind the line.

Answer 8

It would help greatly if you said what country you re in as laws differ for instance there is no law in UK saying you have to get out of way of emergency vehicles.It would also help if you said how you got ticket was it by an officer or camera it seems odd if it was a police officer if by camera you could have contested and got off easy as it would have also showed ambulance. You should have stayed where you were as any emergency vehicle driver will tell you the last thing they need is another accident in their path but as you are not trained then I dont blame you for what you did and neither would the majority of police or magistrates.

Answer 9

I would have moved a little and allowed the Ambulance to squeeze by or if that is not possible I would have waited. It is far too dangerous to other road users to cross at a red. The odd few seconds is seldom a life or death situation and when they arrive at the hospital they are often kept waiting a long time before a Doc can see them.

Answer 10

I can't understand this at all. If you did have to jump a red light for an ambulance to pass then whoever caught you must have seen the scenario. I also don't understand why you couldn't pull forward and in and then stop for the ambulance to pass, did you jump the red light and carry on regardless? None of it makes sense I'm afraid - maybe you're remembering it all wrong.