Do you know when you should give way to an ambulance? Do I need to wear the siren? How should the maneuver be performed? Are there fines if you don’t let an ambulance through? We solve your doubts.
Ambulances are considered emergency vehicles to which it is necessary to give way. Failure to do so can lead to penalties for the driver who obstructs the road and problems for the people who travel on it. For this reason we tell you when to give way to an ambulance and how to do it correctly.
How to Yield to an Ambulance
The first thing you should know in this regard is that the highway code recognizes a series of vehicles as priority for emergencies, such as vehicles of firefighters, police forces, rescue, rescue, civil protection and assistance in health services (ambulances).
Another premise that you should know is that it is not necessary for them to have the siren activated for you to have to give way to them, it will be enough for them to have their lights on to indicate that they have priority on the road. So, if you see the light signal or hear the siren, you must always give way. For it, the DGT establishes 5 steps to follow in this situation:
- First of all you must keep your trajectorythat is, you should not back down or perform strange maneuvers.
- Gradually reduce speed avoiding sudden braking that could cause an accident.
- signals always the maneuver that you are going to do and after observing the state of the road, move to one side if circumstances allow it.
- If there is no option to withdraw, you must keep calm and be prudent when carrying out any surprise maneuver.
- Always comply with the instructions from emergency personnel.
These are the general recommendations of the DGT when making way for an emergency vehicle, but it is possible that special situations arise in which it is convenient to know how to act. On the other hand, it is important that you know that you should not take advantage of the circumstance to overtake other vehicles following the ambulance, since you do not have priority over other drivers.
Yield to an ambulance at an intersection or roundabout
When driving we find ourselves at an intersection and an ambulance must pass, it is necessary to remain calm, do not make sudden maneuversdo not brake to avoid rear-end collisions and take care not to obstruct the intersection.
In the case of roundabouts, regardless of which lane you are in, you will need to yield. Don’t try to get out speed down and maintain the trajectory until the ambulance has passed.
Yield to an ambulance on a two-way street
Depending on the type of road you are on, you can perform the maneuver to give way to an ambulance in one way or another. If you are driving on a two-way street, your displacement should always be to the rightin this way a corridor will be created between both directions that will allow the ambulance to pass through the center.
Yield to an ambulance on two-lane roads
When you drive on a highway or roads that have two lanes in each direction, you must take into account the side you are moving on at that moment. For the maneuver to be safe, if you do it in the right lane, you must move to that side, while if you are in the left, you must move to the left.
How to act in case of an accident
In the event of a road accident, it is possible to find emergency vehicles stopped on the road. In these situations and to avoid major problems, it is necessary to get as far away from these vehicles and follow the instructions of the agents. Stopping to browse, may be the cause of another accident. Road safety is essential and keeping your car in the best conditions is also essential. For this reason, having MAPFRE Car Insurance can get you out of more than one situation.
What happens if you don’t give way to an ambulance
Ambulances have priority, even if they do not have the siren connected, for this reason, if you do not give way to one of these vehicles, you are infringing the General Traffic Regulations. that contemplates a economic sanction of 200 euros for those drivers who obstruct the passage.
In addition to this, you must bear in mind that this sanction may also be applied to pedestrians who are currently traveling on the road and who, due to their attitude, may be hindering the passage of emergency vehicles. These cases, the fine amounts to 80 euros for those people who do not clear the road when an ambulance or emergency vehicle passes by.
Why is it important to make way for an ambulance?
As we have already seen, ambulances are included in the General Traffic Regulations as priority emergency vehicles, but this is not the only reason to give way to them.
You must think that these vehicles are aimed at healthcare and need to reach the place to serve the patients as quickly as possible. On the other hand, when they already have a patient inside, driving should be as smooth as possible so as not to harm the patient. Therefore, they cannot make sudden lane changes, brake hard or change their trajectory to avoid bigger problems.
Yield to an ambulance and do so correctly is a necessity for this type of vehicle. So the best option is to make way as soon as possible, but properly.
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