Recently, a pupil on an Intensive Driving Course in Grantham asked me what is the correct course of action to take if he is stopped at a red light, and blocking an emergency vehicle from passing through on a call. What a great question. We talked about how the law interprets it, how technology is used in some towns/cities to enforce the law, we talked about the moral implications, and we spoke of who is allowed to order you through a red traffic light and in what circumstances.
All very good, interesting stuff.
I put up a scenario based on this conversation for others to consider what they would do in this situation on my social links, and on a driving test in Grantham just this morning, exactly that scenario actually occurred.
The really interesting thing about this though, is that the person who initially asked me the question, is the same person who was on test this morning! How good is that?!
If that doesn't encourage anyone monitoring to ask questions on their driving lessons with me in Grantham, you have to wonder what would?
You are not permitted to drive through a red light for an emergency vehicle UNLESS a Police Officer in uniform actually directs you to go through it - physically, in the act of controlling traffic waves you through the stop line.
Worth knowing, because in a court of law, should you go through the red light having not been directed through, thereby causing an accident and then attempting to offer this situation as some kind of defence to your actions, it is not an actual defence.
In reality, for practical purposes. You would like to think that the Police Officer driving the vehicle on an emergency call, will recognise the fact that a member of public is not permitted to drive through the red light, and turn off the blue lights, the siren and sit there and wait for the lights to go green. If not, then the poor member of public who is waiting at the red light, feels under an awful lot of pressure to move but is being held on a red light - not a good combination.
What happened on the driving test in Grantham this morning was that the examiner without saying a word, having seen the Police car behind, pointed with his right hand over to the left side of the road. My chap (the driver on test) saw this, and was able to move the car over to the left WITHOUT actually going over the STOP line. Phew! A tricky situation where the old saying "knowledge is power" certainly comes into play!
BIG TOM Driving School Intensive Driving Course in Grantham 01476 850 050
Worth knowing, because in a court of law, should you go through the red light having not been directed through, thereby causing an accident and then attempting to offer this situation as some kind of defence to your actions, it is not an actual defence.
In reality, for practical purposes. You would like to think that the Police Officer driving the vehicle on an emergency call, will recognise the fact that a member of public is not permitted to drive through the red light, and turn off the blue lights, the siren and sit there and wait for the lights to go green. If not, then the poor member of public who is waiting at the red light, feels under an awful lot of pressure to move but is being held on a red light - not a good combination.
What happened on the driving test in Grantham this morning was that the examiner without saying a word, having seen the Police car behind, pointed with his right hand over to the left side of the road. My chap (the driver on test) saw this, and was able to move the car over to the left WITHOUT actually going over the STOP line. Phew! A tricky situation where the old saying "knowledge is power" certainly comes into play!
BIG TOM Driving School Intensive Driving Course in Grantham 01476 850 050
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