What do you do when you hear the sirens of an emergency vehicle?

[puppyluv]

I ask this because of what happened this weekend.

A fire truck was coming across the causeway at a fairly good clip, warning everyone of their travels with the sirens etc. In my wrld, you do not pull out ahead of it to beat it through the lights, or ignore it, you pull over to the side so it can pass uninhibited, because every single second it can gain to whatever emepergency it has been calles too counts.

Over the weekend we saw an suv pull out to rush through the traffic lights so it wouldnt have to stop. :mad: :mad: :mad: I can not say the words I want to right now because it is against site rules, not to mention ignorant.
We saw cars that did not give way, and some that did.

People, have some respect for those emergency vehicles, they could be trying to save someone you love, someone who needs their help ASAP! It doesn't take much, just common sense!

[Woofer]

i pull over and out of the way, same as funerals i always stop.

[FutureChief88]

U know.. were one of the only cities in the world that does that for a funeral precession. i think it is completely ignorant to keep driving.

Emergency vehicles are just that.. only used in an EMERGENCY. People that DONT get out of the way should be run down by the vehicles.. lol

in all seriousness tho.. for those of you that dont pull over .. what if it was your family that needed the help. Think about that next time you decide to try and beat them to the punch!

[lmh]

I have volunteered as an ambulance attendant in my past, and having been "blocked" by vehicles who do not yield the right-of-way. I can say it is infuriating at the least. I do believe that there is a law stating that drivers must yield and can be fined for not soing so.

At the same time, I can say that in my travels, many people play their stereo so loud they (not I) can hear themselves think, let alone an emergency siren. Then you have those people you try to yield ... they stop dead in the middle of the lane and NO ONE can get around them (ie. Harbour Bridge).

Sometimes it may be difficult or inconvenient to yield to an emergency vehicle, but minutes and seconds count. They often don't know the seriousness of the situation they are heading to, but I certainly would not want to be responsible for obtructing them while heading to a fire, heart attach, choking, or car accident. It could be someone I know and love.

[nanny]

Only a Moran would do that

[kaj27]

Only a Moran would do that


What is Moran?


I always pull to the right. If it's a two laned road, I'll obviously stay right.

[sanstu]

I think it might be worse than being a moron!

[NoseToTheGrind]

They need to have their plate number taken by the emergency crew....even though I know it would be hard trying to concentrate on driving, but myself personally ALWAYS pull over and stop, and as for funerals as well, I stop right where I am in the middle of the road and ALWAYS take my hat off and hold it to my heart.

[Triple J]

I am usually a pedestrian, silently hope whoever they are going to is going to be all right.

[trinity]

I always pull over, and get a lot of people passing me at light speed. Some of the time I have been in a location that if I pull over instead of continuing, I am actually going to be blocking the lane- places that have off-ramps, medians etc. Once I pulled over on the thruway near an on-ramp, and I had one %^&* of a time to get back out on the road due to traffic that DIDN'T stop- I was almost rammed about 3 times- the ambulance would have been coming back for me, so on the thruway, I will slow down and move over as far as I can to the right, but it will be a frosty day in Hades before I pull over and stop there again.
As far as funeral processions, stopping in some areas is dangerous for people coming on the scene afterwards and not understanding why everyone else is just sitting there, they might attempt to go around everyone. As well, I wish that funeral homes would give flags to EVERY car in the procession, if you are around the corner or in a garage, and miss seeing the hearse and first two or three cars and they have opted out of a police escort, you have one heck of a time deciding when to get going again.

[rhiley_08j]

Most vehicles in a funeral procession will put there hazards lights on to let others know they are part of the procession. I personally think it is common courtesy to stop and let the first 3 or 4 cars go by if they are travelling opposite of you. If they are travelling the same way as you than you should pull over and let the procession pass. What really erks me is when people will force their way into a procession. That to me is completely disrespectful.

[donteatrawpotatoes]

Most vehicles in a funeral procession will put there hazards lights on to let others know they are part of the procession. I personally think it is common courtesy to stop and let the first 3 or 4 cars go by if they are travelling opposite of you. If they are travelling the same way as you than you should pull over and let the procession pass. What really erks me is when people will force their way into a procession. That to me is completely disrespectful.

I have seen a car once (green neon... poo to you green neon driver!) cut into a gap in a funeral procession, and honk their horn because I guess they were going too slow. My oldest child knows enough to stop when she sees the purple flags uptown and she puts her hand on her chest. I really just think it's respectful. I can't even imagine someone trying to cut in front of an emergency vehicle. The very act flusters me. :(

[dan j]

I listen to music at a higher level than most people and I've been told by passengers that they don't know how I heard the sirens so quickly and find out what direction they're coming from and get out of the way.

Also, I think Saint John is one of the only cities I know of that uses the word ignorant to mean rude. Yes, it is mildly accepted definition of the word but to me it just sounds so ignorant to use the word ignorant that way especially when I hear most Saint Johners say it like ign'rent, two syllables.

[puppyluv]

Dan., you were RUDE to point out that you feel people are ignorant in meanings etc.

There.. feel better?:p

[Tara]

Also, I think Saint John is one of the only cities I know of that uses the word ignorant to mean rude. Yes, it is mildly accepted definition of the word but to me it just sounds so ignorant to use the word ignorant that way especially when I hear most Saint Johners say it like ign'rent, two syllables.

THANK YOU! That drives me crazy! (Sorry to go off topic!)

[FutureChief88]

When one of my best friends died.. we were in the front line of the procession.. (2 cars from the hearse). We were coming over the harbour bridge heading to the graveyard, and a huge cubevan **** into the procession..and STAYED in it until we got off the bridge.. It was unreal!

[trinity]

I think some of the time people are too busy to notice anything other than what they absolutely have to- they are safe drivers in that they see the car(s) in front of them but don't notice that they are part of a procession, or come around a corner and see someone stopped but don't understand the reason so they get frustrated. I think I posted this on here before, but one day I came up Consumer Drive heading for WalMart. I was about the 4th car back and I see the light turn green, and no one is going, except a whole bunch of cars breezing through what should be a red light up Westmorland. I didn't see any 4-way flashers, police escort or funeral flags, nor were they going that slowly, so I called the city works line to tell them I thought the lights were broken on Westmorland. I felt like an idiot when I finally figured it out, but really, how would I be expected to know, I'm just coming upon a situation that is pre-existing, the cars in front of me knew because they were waiting at the stoplight when the procession must have started. This thread as well as attending two relatives funerals in one week has inspired me to do one thing- I'm going to put it in my funeral pre-planning that I DON"T want a procession, I'm being cremated and they can put the urn in a family member's car and drive like a normal human up to the cemetery. Really, the population is aging and the traffic is getting worse all over the city; at some point there are going to be so many funerals in a day that it will be problematic if people come to a screeching halt all over the city.

[dan j]

I think you're overstating a possible negative situation based upon anecdotal evidence plus media-hyped information that doesn't include actual traffic data, traffic routing improvements, and future commuting needs.

[puppyluv]

Taken from the managerial '1001 ways to say nothing with words" book?

Just kidding Danj..

[KRS]

I pull over for sirens. I do not pull over for Funerals. I have respect for the dead but idling is expensive and bad for the environment.

[nasoj007]

I pull over for sirens and funerals. Last night I was driving down Loch Lomand Road in the usual 5:00 traffic when I heard police car sirens (and saw them in my rearview). The cars in front of me pulled over as did I but the truck behind me gunned it and pulled out around me. He nearly got smoked by the police car as it passed us but the cop was on the brakes (and the horn) quick enough to miss him.
As for pulling over for funerals I feel I can take 30 seconds out of my day to show my respects for the family of the deceased. It's a small gesture but I know it helps a little.
Everyone just needs to slow down and take stock of the situation. Is pulling over for a hearse or waiting until the precession goes by before pulling out really going to impact your day negatively? Doing the opposite will probably negatively impact the family's day (it's already bad enough isn't it). The same goes for pulling over for an emergency vehicle. It could be your family that their rushing to help so pull over and let them by. Don't try to race them through the intersection or stop in a spot that blocks their way (the buddy that parked in front or the ambulance bay door at the hospital I'm looking at you).
If everyone thought a little more about other people than just themselves things would be that much better.

[trinity]

I would like to hijack this thread to say two things to the 3 or 4 drivers on Union st today who stopped to try and let me turn left up Carmarthen: 1- Thanks 1 and 2- DONT. Why DONT? Because every time you stopped to be nice to me, 2 or 3 other cars just did end runs around you, passing you on your inside right. I could see them coming, so if you were wondering why I didn't take advantage of your generosity, it's because I need the use of my crappy station wagon for just a few more weeks til I get moved. Then feel free to t-bone me all you like, I'm buying a new car anyway LOL. The people passing on the inside however does relate to why it might be dangerous to just stop for a funeral in the middle of the road.

[FutureChief88]

When i stop in a procession.. I always pull over.

[nasoj007]

I got a good one... a little of topic but along the same lines. Last night I was coming down from Forest Hills and got stopped at the bottom of the hill by a flagman. They were paving the parking lot of the Forest Hills Convience and the roller had to back out onto the road. I look in my rear-view mirror to see a lady in a mustang come pealing around the corner, talking on a cell phone. What does she do, she swerves into the oncoming lane to go around me and heads right for the roller. She noticed pretty quickly that she couldn't go past and stopped but it's that reflex that everyone seems to have lately that bothers me.

It seems like no-one tries to figure out why the vehicle in front of them stopped they just want to get around it. It happens when I stop for crosswalks (look out pedestrians), for cars that are turning into a driveway or road and sometimes even when I stop for a red light. Take a second to assess the situation and act accordingly don't just let your reflexes do the driving.

[trinity]

Exactly, even if your music is turned up too loud to hear sirens etc you should be able to see others pulling over and do the same, even if all of them ARE idiots, and are just pulling over mystified by the EastPoint center lights,, I'd rather be lumped in with the dummies who stop for no reason than to be the person IN the big black wagon because I didn't stop, or worse, be the CAUSE of the occupant being in the hearse because I did an end run around someone on Union St and creamed a pedestrian or t-boned a turning car.

[rhiley_08j]

Also, I think Saint John is one of the only cities I know of that uses the word ignorant to mean rude. Yes, it is mildly accepted definition of the word but to me it just sounds so ignorant to use the word ignorant that way especially when I hear most Saint Johners say it like ign'rent, two syllables.


I believe it is used to mean rude, in that if a person is rude, they apparently don't know any better, which would mean they are lacking the knowledge of how to act towards others, which would make them ignorant.

[inuit]

I neede to agree with Trinity on the stopping thing. It's really nice of peopleto stop and let you turn left but please don't. Especially on a double lane. If you stop on the outside lane to let me turn left, the guy on the inside lane may not kinow that you are stopping to let me turn and he does not see me and stop. The fault would be mine so please in the future just let me wait till I see for myself if it is safe to turn . I was almost creamed while trying to turn left off Rothesay Ave into Ritchies last week because the big truck stopped and waved me to turn biut the car comming up Rothesay only saw the green light and couldn't see me for the truck. Too close for comfort.