New road rule: Passing stopped enforcement, emergency and escort vehicles with flashing lights
Slow down for emergency services with flashing red, blue or magenta lights or sirens.
Road users will need to slow to 40km/h when driving past stationary or slow-moving emergency or enforcement vehicles with flashing red, blue or magenta lights, or sounding an alarm.
Emergency and enforcement vehicles include police, ambulance, fire services and State Emergency Service vehicles, as well as VicRoads truck enforcement vehicles that have magenta flashing lights.
When emergency or enforcement vehicles are displaying flashing red, blue or magenta lights, or sounding their alarm, drivers must:
- Approach at a speed that allows the driver to stop, if necessary, before passing the vehicle and give way to any emergency or enforcement worker on foot in the vicinity;
- Not drive past or overtake the vehicle at a speed of more than 40km/h;
- Not increase speed until the driver is a sufficient distance past the vehicle to not cause danger to workers in the immediate vicinity.
This rule does not apply on a road with a median strip, where the vehicle is on the other side of the median strip.
The rule applies when the emergency vehicle is in a service road adjacent to a main road – if you are passing on the main road you will still need to slow down.
The rule applies to the driver despite any other road rule.
Further details available at VicRoads.
