When an ambulance, fire truck or police car comes up behind you with its siren and lights on, pull to the right edge of the road and stop until it has passed. Don't stop in the middle of an intersection: drive through it first, then pull over.
It sounds simple, but a siren behind you causes panic, and panicked drivers brake in the lane, swerve left or stop in the middle of an intersection. Here's how to do it calmly.
What to do
- Stay calm and find the vehicle. Check your mirrors; sirens echo off buildings.
- Signal right so the driver knows what you're doing.
- Pull as far right as you safely can and stop. On a multi-lane road, every lane moves right.
- Stay stopped until it passes. Watch for a second emergency vehicle; they often travel in pairs.
- Signal and merge back when it's safe, and don't follow it: California makes it illegal to follow within 300 feet of an emergency vehicle with its siren or lights on.
Where not to stop
| You're at… | Do this |
|---|---|
| An intersection | Go through it (if your light is green), then pull over |
| A red light, stopped | Stay put, or move right only if it's safe and legal |
| A roundabout | Exit at your next exit, then pull over |
| A narrow bridge or curve | Keep going to the first safe place to pull over |
| A one-way street with several lanes | Pull to the nearest edge, left or right |
Pull over vs move over
These are two different rules. Pull over and stop is for an emergency vehicle that is moving toward you or coming up behind you with its siren on. Move over is for one that is stopped at the roadside with its lights flashing: change lanes away from it or slow down. We cover that one in the Move Over law.
Why the right-hand edge?
Emergency drivers are trained to pass on the left. When everyone moves right, a lane opens up predictably. If one driver moves left and another moves right, the ambulance has nowhere to go.
Practice it
On the Sirens roads of Road Sign Adventure, an ambulance comes up behind you. Move to the right lane and stop, or it costs you a license point.
Drive the Sirens roads in Road Sign AdventureStart ›Rule and sources: siren behind you.
