Getting out of the way of ambulances and car damage

Had a bit of a to-do yesterday. Was stuck in traffic on a four-lane road ( two lanes each way with a raised central plaza in between ) and an ambulance came up behind flashing lights and sounding the siren. The only option to get out of the way was to mount the kerb of the central reservation, which was about 9 inches high. Most of the cars in front of me managed to do this but there was no way I could without damaging my low slung German penis extension.

So with the ambulance wailing behind me I took the gap that had opened up in front and drove through it until I could safely pull over without damaging the car. The ambulance went through fine and I then faced a barrage of abuse, hand signs and honking horns from a number of drivers.

I feel pretty bad about what happened but I don’t really know what else I could have done. If I had mounted the kerb I could have saved the ambulance probably 10 seconds; enough to make a difference in an emergency for sure, but would have been left facing a potentially large bill for damage to my car, which I am certain I could not have claimed back from the ambulance service / NHS / council.

What would Singletrackworld have done?

LOL this thread is going to be hilarious.

Now where’s the popcorn.

😀

What would Singletrackworld have done

Pulled over in a place safe to do so..

I’d have done exactly what you did.

you did the right thing. You got out of the way as soon as it was safe for you to do so.

Don’t think you can ask for more than that. I bet the person in the back of the van was thankful that you got out of the way rather than holding them up.

surely its all about moving out of the way safely, which is what you did. ALways amazes me how people often just stop, pulled over slightly when they see/hear emergency vehicles even if they are miles back. I often think it would be less disruptive to keep on driving to a wider bit of road and then pull in

I have accelerated when an ambulance was behind me, when I was in the fast lane, loads of cars on my left. It was best solution, the ambulance passanger gave me a thumbs up as I pulled over after overtaking all the cars.

most people, IMO, would have frozen, slammed on the brakes and tried to pull over.

What you did and joined back in behind the ambulance again 😉

serves you right for having a

low slung German penis extension

… 😉

Hold on, driving a low-slung German penis extension _AND_ worried about what people think of you when pushing through traffic?

Where is the real RandomJeremy and what have you done with him?

I drive an ambulance and I wince at the way people bang their cars up kerbs…. no prob with what you did if cant get up kerb.

I’d have done what I felt was best and then turned up the music so I couldn’t hear anyone complaining.

This works in marriage too.

Sounds like you did the right thing and wgas what the hand gesturers think?

It’s funny how people think that stopping is the only way to get out of the way of emergency vehicles! Only this morning I was in the left lane of a 3 lane roundabout, waiting for the lights to change.
A fire engine came up behind, in the (empty) right hand land just as the lights went green – about 3 of the cars in front of me suddenly swerved and stopped, mounted the kerb and caused much confusion! The fire engine had by now, flown past 2 lanes away and disappeared!
Morons!

(Ah, in the time it took me to type that , I see others may have already mentioned something similar! 🙂 )

I see lots of people holding up ambulances etc. by immediately stopping on hearing the sirens, when continuing on as they were doing would be far more helpful. I’ve jumped a red light before now as it was the only practical way I could get out of the way of a fire engine.

What would Singletrackworld have done?

abuse from nobs in cars

you should have followed the ambulance through the lot

Failing that use the NOYE technique

wgas what the hand gesturers think?

Drivers of low slung German penis extensions ?

ALways amazes me how people often just stop, pulled over slightly when they see/hear emergency vehicles even if they are miles back. I often think it would be less disruptive to keep on driving to a wider bit of road and then pull in

+1

turned up the music so I couldn’t hear anyone complaining.

This works in marriage too.

Blimey you’re brave.

I imagine myself riding my favourite bit of singletrack and let it all wash over me. Stealth loud music, really.

It is often hilarious watching people’s reactions as soon as they hear and see blues’n’twos. I figure you probably did the best you could in the situation. You’ll have forgotten it all in the morning.

Stop with your car blocking the lane, put hazard flashers on, this means you can stop or park where you like, walk slowly to the ambulance, and ask the driver in a very loud aggressive voice, “JUST WHAT ELSE DID YOU GET FOR CHRISTMAS, AND IM TRYING TO LISTEN TO THE RADIO.” other amusing coments would relate to the parentage of the driver, whats the big rush,raising a single finger etc etc.

try it next time and let us know the outcome.

For the termianlly thicjk the abovbe is not recomennded but probably does happen.

Interesting post – my old beast is sufficiently not-given-a-f***-about that I probably could have done the kerb climb, but I’d have been with all the people giving you the fingers as you went past. But given your side of the story, I don’t know what else you could have done.

I would have done what the OP had done.

I’ve jumped a red light before now as it was the only practical way I could get out of the way of a fire engine.

I’ve heard horror stories about people getting points for this and not being able to have them taken off despite the circumstance. Any idea what the law says?

What would Singletrackworld have done?

abused you from the comfort of their – kerb munching – fatbikes

Thanks all, you’ve helped put my mind at rest. If I’d have been in my knackered old vectra I would have been straight up the kerb no worries, but no chance in the cock-extension.

woudl’ve done the same.

UK also needs to implement the same “rettungsgasse” (emergency) lane thing that they just implemented in Austria, on the motorways.

Instead of cars in jam trying to pull in from outside lane to let emergency vehicles down the outside, ALL cars in outside lane pull towards centre, and all other cars pull to inside, thereby creating a free space and not a carnage of somecars going one way, others going the other and others effectively blocking those trying to move out of the way.

Saw it on that cop programme on telly last night. complete chaos.

Chaos, I’ve heard/seen several stories in that vein. Just searched the BBC website, but can’t find them yet. The bloke I remember did get stuck with the points though.

I’ve heard horror stories about people getting points for this and not being able to have them taken off despite the circumstance. Any idea what the law says?

The law is still the same whether or not an ambulance is behind you. You can get done for running a red light and some people have been, despite moving over fir emergency vehicles.

OP say you rammed it up the kerb then later on a suspension/link failed on that wheel in the motorway?

I’ve jumped a red light before now as it was the only practical way I could get out of the way of a fire engine.

I’ve heard horror stories about people getting points for this and not being able to have them taken off despite the circumstance. Any idea what the law says?

3 points on an otherwise 100% clean driving record for going through a red light for an ambulance in London, wouldn’t do it again but couldn’t be arsed arguing about it as prob deserved the points from other times anyway 😉

The law is still the same whether or not an ambulance is behind you. You can get done for running a red light and some people have been, despite moving over fir emergency vehicles.

I’m calling borrox on that.

my 3pts trump your borrox

Reckon I would have done the same.

The annoying part is when some wally decides to tailgate the emergency service vehicle through the path thats been cleared, meaning that everyone who has had to pull over to a safe place has to wait for them to come though as well.

my 3pts trump your borrox

You didn’t tell them though did you (?), and they aren’t psychic.

Given your choice of car, I suggest popular opinion isn’t something that bothers you unduly.

The wife did this a few years back, except instead of mounting a curb, it was actually a divider between the main roadway and a side road / layby thing, with the side road being somewhat lower height than the roadway.

As a result, she ended up straddled across the two balanced on the underside of the car.

I had a 40 minute drive to get to her, then once I’d worked out what had happened (her description was less than factually useful, and punctuated by crying anyway, as she’d miscarried a few days earlier – was not a good time), I had to find a diy shop, buy some bricks, so I could jack the car up, put the bricks under the suspended side’s wheels, drive it forward 6″, move the back brick to the front….. and eventually get it off. It took hours from me leaving the house to us both being back home.

We both now pull over ‘when safe to do so’

Sounds like you need to get a Chelsea tractor, they mount curbs as if they aren’t even there!

So a TT or an R8, I can’t think of any others?

My wife drove into a traffic island when turning right the other day, without any help from an Ambulance she a) acted shocked despite turning in stupidly early and b) acted offended when I was pissed off about it – I pay for the car, and the maintenance of said car and I love it too so as you can imagine i wasn’t best pleased. She’s normally a very good driver too so it’s a bit unusual for her really.

hora – whats your car made of cheese.

I’d have done exactly as the OP did.

Most people have no idea what’s coming up behind them, only the other day I was going along with a car really close behind as I was doing to biggest crime ever of keeping to the speed limit and behind the car behind me was a Ambulance On blues and twos.

This clown behind hadn’t got a clue the ambo was approaching and I decided to indicate left in the Hope that she would check her mirrors, she then tried coming round me then must have spotted the ambo and swerved in like they do abandoning a car at the end of a police chase.

As we moved off, she started adjusting her interior mirror…..

I had a low car once and there was a fire and the hose was running across the road so had to drive over them ramp things and drop down.

As I approached the hose, the front bumper of my car wouldn’t clear and I pushed the hose down the road 😯 the fire chief guy was not happy and a police man was upset as well because I was on a one way street with about 40 vehicles behind me.

Ended up getting the fire men to lift the hose whilst I drove under 😳

I hate hearing emergency vehicles when I’m cycling. Not cos of the them but because of other drivers reactions. Most haven’t got a clue until the ambulance is right up their arse but drivers just panic – swerving left and right, trying to outrun it, trying to tuck in behind it and get a bit of a clear run, mounting kerbs, you name it.

They never bother looking for cyclists, pedestrians etc before they do any of this random swerving.