Why don't ambulance drivers obey the rules of the road?

Yesterday, I had an ambulance tailgate me for several miles. I was driving 5 MPH above the posted speed, and the ambulance had no lights on, nor siren.

When the road widened to a 4 lane road, the ambulance immediately got in the inside lane (left in US), accelerated only slightly and stayed in this lane until it exited.

NC

I'm sure that BibC14 will be here shortly. I think I hear his siren now.

thats a big 10-4 Tee,

anyways, NC,
i can think of one or two reasons why the driver was doing that,
i am not sure about the exact laws down in NC,
but here in CT, if the patient is at the lowest priority level (some people mistake ambulances for taxis to the hospital, specially if they are free, which isnt such a bad idea because u get treated by the hospital quicker sometimes if you come in the 'lance)

but anyways, the rig could have been carrying a passenger, and although their condition did not warrant lights and sirens, the crew probably wanted to get them to the hospital quickly, so that they could get back to their headquarters and be able to respond to a more serious call.

OR they were coming home from the hospital, and the same thing, they wanted to get back quickly and get restocked and back into service.

BUT i am kinda on your side on this one, because even if those were the cases, then the driver still should have given you some room, especially since the 'lance weights a lot, and it might have been hard for them to stop had something happend.
Even at stop signs and lights, we are supposed to stop a full amubulance length behind the car in front of us, incase we get a call and need to manuver out.

keep in mind that both ambulances and mack trucks are much higher than regular cars and some suvs, so we can see more of the road ahead, so that is why some truckers and some ambulance drivers find themselves sneaking up on the car in front of them. They are just able to see more of the road then you can so the anticipate what is going to happen up ahead. now i am NOT saying its a god thing, but just giving you a little insight into why they do it.


on a side note, you asked why dont ambulances obey the rules of the road, and in fact they break them more than you do.
Lights and Sirens(even for cops) are not a free get out of jail pass letting them speed and blow red lights, but only a REQUEST for the right-of-way. so when we speed or go through lights, we ARE bending the rules slightly, BUT we have been rigerously trained to handle situations that might come up when responding, so dont worry, we dont let any idiot with their license get behind the wheel, it takes real skill, and anticipation, and extreme concentration, and at red lights we dont just blow through, but make sure that everyone is stopped and it is safe, then cautiously go through.
(on a side note, if they DID have their lights and sirens on, it is HIGHLY appreciated if you pull over and let us pass.)


now i cant speak for all of the sevices out there, but i know that i would trust most of the people who drive for us, for i trained most of them, so they learned from the best (though i would rather it be me driving, just because i love it so much) and i know that they would not do that to you.

I'm sorry that someone tainted your view and hope you can accept my appology for them.


-Chris

Thanks Bibc14 for your reply and your apology.

If the ambulance was carrying a patient, I hope the driver was nice enough to ask if they wanted a drink. The last I saw of them, they were parking in a McDonalds.

NC

LOL NC!!!

haha, well then that is a different circumstance,
and apparently, the driver was just being a ****.
but u know, everyones gotta eat,

ive had nights where every time we stop to pickup the dinner we ordered out, there is a call, so by the time we finally had dinner it was cold and we were starving, so i can understand why they would want to eat quickly, but it still doesnt give him the right to tailgate you.

-chris

As a member of my local fire department, I can say that we're only allowed to drive 5 mph over the posted limit when responding to a fire. (Believe me, being limited to 5mph over is very, very frustrating! - I usually just turn on my hazard lights and HIT IT, especially since I'm only 5 blocks from the Fire Hall!)

My close friends, who are also EMT's, often run into troubles with slower drivers on roads where they're unable to pass.

Of course, if in an emergency, although they're limited to the speed they can travel, if they're going with lights and sirens, other drivers should pull over. (which doesn't happen a frustratingly amount of times!)

(U.S.) If the emergency vehicle behind you wasn't running with lights or sirens, you shouldn't have felt obligated to make way. They obviously either were not transporting anyone, or it was a very non-emergency situation.

Gizmo,
i think that the 5mph rule may be a local thing for you, because I don't think that we use it, and I KNOW that it is not enforced anywhere that i know of, because i see people responding much more than 5+ miles an hour over the speed limit, and i have to say that i am guilty of that too, but only when it is safe, but usually it is just +5 or 10 when i am responding,

You mentioned that you only used your hazard lights when responding, and since I am sure it is probably legal up there, you might want to look into getting some emergency lights. They really help to get people out of your way when you are in traffic, also an air horn and PA system are perfectly legal for volunteer firefighters too, and that air horn helps tremendously in getting people to notice you and get out of your way in traffic.

Galls has a nice selection,
i am quite familiar with them, so if you have any questions feel free to email me.
Http://www.galls.com/

-Chris,
p.s., noticed you just joined recently, so if you have any questions you think i could help with, or just wana swap stories, feel free to email me.

This system works fabulously. It has dramatically reduced accidents involving emergency vehicles.

Almost all traffic lights in my area are equipped with what is known as a traffic preemption system. This system detects the sound of emergency equipment sirens and automatically changes the traffic signal to red on all sides except the side from which the equipment is approaching. The light on this side is turned green. After a predetermined time, the light returns to normal operation. The fact that the system takes advantage of sirens already on the equipment, requiring no special modifications, makes it very cost effective. By stopping all traffic prior to emergency equipment entering the intersection, a much safer situation is created for both the public and for emergency responders. Existing lights not yet equipped soon will be, as well as all future lights as they are installed.

Koz, are you sure it is trigered by the sirens???
i know of other ways to trigger the stoplights, but sirens seems the least accurate to me.
1. There are many different tones that the different vehicles use.
2. many drivers switch tones when driving, to catch the attention of the drivers on the road.
3. with a siren, you get a lot of echo off of buildings and such, so it may be hard to tell where the sound is coming from.
4. A car alarm going off nearby might triger it.

what is used near me is a special strobe light on the vehicles aimed at the traffic lights, and it flashes at a certain speed that the traffic lights register as emergency vehicles, and then it turns the lights red, except for a flashing yellow on the side of the emergency vehicles.
this is good because most traffic lights already have light sensors installed to see the headlights of oncoming cars so they can change the light to green for them.

another system uses radio waves, and i believe it changes the lights to red.

so if your system does use sirens, i would be curious to hear about it, and if they have any websites, because although the town next to me uses the strobes on the top of the cars, we dont use anything, so if the siren thing works it would be good to hear about, to see if i could get it implimented.

Thanks
-Chris

I found the paragraph I posted here
It is not my local area, but I know very recently it has begun being installed in my area.

I did find more information

here
andmore here

Koz, thanks, for all the info and the links,
i just glanced at them but i will check them over later, to see how they get over the hurdles i described.

thanks a bunch
-Chris