Emergency Service Sirens

[nickymanley]

I was always under the impression that the emergency services were not allowed to use their sirens after 11pm, however I have heard a few after this time recently. What is the policy?

[Bonzo 2000]

They are not allowed to drive through red lights or break the speed limits either, but for obvious reasons, the law tends to turn a blind eye unless the emergency vehicle is being driven recklessly.  I any event, sirens are only used to alert nearby traffic - you often see emergency vehicles rushing to an incident along quiet stretches of road without sirens. I'm sure the use of sirens is unlawful after 11pm, as for car horns, but I would hope that the driver of a speeding ambulance needing to alert other late night traffic to his approach would not hold back on making a noise for fear of disturbing local sleepers.

[Bonzo 2000]

They are not allowed to drive through red lights or break the speed limits either, but for obvious reasons, the law tends to turn a blind eye unless the emergency vehicle is being driven recklessly.  In any event, sirens are only used to alert nearby traffic - you often see emergency vehicles rushing to an incident along quiet stretches of road without sirens. I'm sure the use of sirens is unlawful after 11pm, as for car horns, but I would hope that the driver of a speeding ambulance needing to alert other late night traffic to his approach would not hold back on making a noise for fear of disturbing local sleepers.

[Bonzo 2000]

Sorry for the double-post above - slip of the mouse.  A passing ambulance made me jump out of my skin!

[Will423]

The siren can be used on an emergency vehicle any time, day or night.

Not only does it clear the roadway by warning other vehicles but it also lets people who are trapped say in a fire that help is on the way.

When I was a firefighter we used it whenever we wanted and never once did anyone complain.

Will

[Grunty]

I have to disagree with Bonzo.  It is specifically written into the law that emergency vehicles may exceed speed limits and cross traffic lights on red when necessary.  The blame is very firmly on them if they cause an accident though.  There is no time limit on use of sirens, which is at the driver's discretion.  The fire service tend to use them more, for the reasons Will gives and because their vehicles are less manoeuverable.  The police sometmes don't use sirens because car drivers often stop in the wrong places and hold them up.

[Will423]

A Fire Appliance may also go through a red light, but it must be treated as a give way sign. So the driver has to stop for oncoming traffic.

Two other things they can do that are against the law is break the speed limit (going to a shout only) and leave the appliance unattended with the engine running as it is needed to work the water pump.

Will

[Bonzo 2000]

Thanks to Will and Grunty - I stand corrected on my assumptions.  Either way, it all answers the original question that you should not be surprised if your hear them through the night

[Dagman]

They can sound their sirens and jump red lights as much as they like for me if it increases someone's chance of survival!

[Clare A]

There must've been one heck of a shout from Douglas the other teatime - the fire bobbies came through not only with the blues & twos, but also blasting on the vehicle's horn. It was effective - I saw at least six cars pull over to let them through. For such a small place, our fire service is pretty active. I live directly opposite them, so see much of their comings & goings. Granted, there are long periods of inactivity in between. They're forever practising up and down their tower. The other half & I joke: 'There they are, practising again - they can't be very good at it, can they?', but needless to say, we don't mean it, and have the utmost respect for them. Brave men & women, all. I doubt I could carry someone of my own weight over my shoulder, down a ladder.

[dan_999uk]

Hopefully I can answer this question - I work for a UK ambulance service.

The Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 s.86 says:

No statutory provision imposing a speed limit on motor vehicles shall apply to any vehicle on an
occasion when it is being used for fire brigade, ambulance or police purposes, if the observance of that
provision would be likely to hinder the use of the vehicle for the purpose for which it is being used on
that occasion.

The Traffic Signs Regulations and General Directions 1994 s.33 contains the exemption for red traffic signals.

Sirens and two-tone horns can only be fitted to emergency vehicles (Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986 s.37) and can be used at any time to indicate our presence on the road and the urgency of our journey, although our service guidelines suggest we don't use sirens between 23:30 and 07:00 to maintain good community relations :-)

There are quite a few legal exemptions we can claim when responding to emergencies, including:

• Stopping on clearways
• Parking on the zig-zags of a pedestrian crossing
• Parking in areas controlled by double white or yellow lines
• Stopping the engine while parked
• Parking on the offside of the road at night
• Parking on footway/verge/central reservation
• Observing keep left/keep right signs
• Motorway regulations (stopping on the hard shoulder, reversing, etc)
• Entering a bus lane or street
• Entering a pedestrian precinct

We always have to be accountable when claiming the above exemptions - we don't do things just because we can, theres usually a good reason!