Cyclone Posted February 13, 2014 Share Posted February 13, 2014 It's not a question about what to do, it's more of advice for those that seem to be confused (although if an emergency vehicle driver wants to correct me then I'll be happy to learn). Halifax Road this morning (2 lane, dual carriageway) Rapid response ambulance Volvo comes down the road in the 2nd lane. Both cars in front of it, side by side, immediately stop. Volvo can't actually fly, so it has to now sound it's horn in addition to the sirens to get the idiots to move! What they should have done, IMO, is car in the left hand lane, slow down somewhat (not stop, there is no reason). Car in the overtaking lane, finish overtaking, and pull in. The result of that would be that the Volvo barely has to slow at all, the car actually in it's lane gets out of the way, instead of just stopping in front of it, causing the Volvo to stop. It's not rocket science is it? The road in front of both these cars was clear as far as it was visible by the way, so they had the option to speed up, slow down or change lane all in complete safety. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bonzo77 Posted February 13, 2014 Share Posted February 13, 2014 There's plenty of room for 3 lanes of traffic on a dual carriageway. If I'm in the right hand lane, I'll pull into the central reservation, if I can't get into the left lane in time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mg16 Posted February 13, 2014 Share Posted February 13, 2014 some people get twitchy and nervous when a vehicle flashing its lights and sounding its piercing loud sirens comes flying up behind them which then manifests itself as indecisiveness. quite human I would say. equally there are those that take it in their stride. I wouldn't personally describe one group as idiots simply because they react not as expected by others. not all people are good at science, be it rocket or otherwise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boyfriday Posted February 13, 2014 Share Posted February 13, 2014 There's also the possibility the driver in the right hand lane was overly conscious of the speed cameras on Halifax Road. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cyclone Posted February 13, 2014 Author Share Posted February 13, 2014 There's plenty of room for 3 lanes of traffic on a dual carriageway. If I'm in the right hand lane, I'll pull into the central reservation, if I can't get into the left lane in time. The central reservation on Halifax Road is a raised one. There was plenty of time to get into the left hand lane though, particularly after the only car in the left hand lane stopped (for no good reason). ---------- Post added 13-02-2014 at 10:02 ---------- some people get twitchy and nervous when a vehicle flashing its lights and sounding its piercing loud sirens comes flying up behind them which then manifests itself as indecisiveness. quite human I would say. equally there are those that take it in their stride. I wouldn't personally describe one group as idiots simply because they react not as expected by others. not all people are good at science, be it rocket or otherwise. It's the wrong reaction, it might cost someone their life because of the delay created (particularly if multiple drivers keep doing the wrong thing). There is no excuse for failing to learn to react appropriately to an expected event on the road. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mg16 Posted February 13, 2014 Share Posted February 13, 2014 The central reservation on Halifax Road is a raised one. There was plenty of time to get into the left hand lane though, particularly after the only car in the left hand lane stopped (for no good reason). ---------- Post added 13-02-2014 at 10:02 ---------- It's the wrong reaction, it might cost someone their life because of the delay created (particularly if multiple drivers keep doing the wrong thing). There is no excuse for failing to learn to react appropriately to an expected event on the road. and I suppose an ambulance has never ran anyone over or had a crash on the way to an emergency? they do not have carte blanche you know that right? they equally have to observe certain rules so as not to endanger other road users going about their daily business. might be, could be , should be is all conjecture, not all people pass their driving test first time round, I suppose in some peoples world that's not good enough. huh? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Epic Fail Posted February 13, 2014 Share Posted February 13, 2014 You're probably right in what they should have done, but it's much easier to analyse what should have been done after it has happened. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cyclone Posted February 13, 2014 Author Share Posted February 13, 2014 There's also the possibility the driver in the right hand lane was overly conscious of the speed cameras on Halifax Road. There aren't any on the downward side. ---------- Post added 13-02-2014 at 10:30 ---------- and I suppose an ambulance has never ran anyone over or had a crash on the way to an emergency? they do not have carte blanche you know that right? they equally have to observe certain rules so as not to endanger other road users going about their daily business. might be, could be , should be is all conjecture, not all people pass their driving test first time round, I suppose in some peoples world that's not good enough. huh? I've no idea what this rant is about, I certainly didn't make any of the claims you've just argued against, so that just looks like multiple strawmen. Epic Fail - true, it's easier in hindsight, it was also easy in sight, I could see them about to do the wrong thing, they then went ahead and did it. And it's really common. People need to get out of the idea that the correct response to a siren is to immediately stop. In flowing traffic that is often the worst reaction as it just creates a blockage in the road. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boyfriday Posted February 13, 2014 Share Posted February 13, 2014 There aren't any on the downward side. That might be so, but I've often seen drivers driving into Sheffield slow down markedly as they pass the shops on Halifax Road, although I appreciate the incident you describe might not have been at that point. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
truman Posted February 13, 2014 Share Posted February 13, 2014 There aren't any on the downward side. . Really? I'm sure I've driven past Truvelo ones going down the hill just before the Lidl shop.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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