Emergency services workers
Slowing down for emergency and enforcement workers
Every day there are people working on or around our roads to make them safer for us. It's important that you slow down and give space to workers to avoid putting them at risk of injury or death.
We all deserve to get home safely, so when you see road works, slow down, give them a wave and only speed up after you have passed through the works and signage indicates it's safe to speed up.
Slowing down for emergency and enforcement workers
Every day there are people working on or around our roads to make them safer for us. It's important that you slow down and give space to workers to avoid putting them at risk of injury or death.
We all deserve to get home safely, so when you see road works, slow down, give them a wave and only speed up after you have passed through the works and signage indicates it's safe to speed up.
Slow to 40 when approaching emergency vehicles
On July 1, 2017 Road Rule 79A, known as the 40km/hr flashing lights rule, was introduced to keep emergency and enforcement workers safe: a 40km/h speed limit applies when passing a stationary police vehicle, emergency vehicle, enforcement vehicle and escort vehicle with flashing lights or sounding an alarm.
Drivers must slow down to 40km/hr so they can stop safely when approaching and passing enforcement, emergency or escort vehicles that are stationary or moving slowly (less than 10km/h), and have either:
- Red and blue flashing lights
- Magenta (purple flashing lights)
- An alarm sounding.
Drivers must not exceed 40km/h when passing the vehicle and not increase their speed until a safe distance from the scene. The rule applies regardless of which lane you're in, even on multilane roads.
The rule does not apply to vehicles on the opposite side of a divided road (separated by a median strip) from an emergency or enforcement vehicle scene.
The rule establishes a required standard for safe behaviour and further ensures emergency workers can get on with their important work without worrying about being struck by a passing vehicle or debris.
Keeping clear of law enforcement and emergency vehicles
If a police, emergency, enforcement or escort vehicle has its red, blue or magenta lights flashing or its siren on, you must:
- Get out of its way
- Give way and stop if necessary, even if you have a green traffic light.
You must also stop if twin red lights are flashing on a road, e.g. outside a fire or ambulance station. You can start driving again once the lights have stopped flashing and the road is clear of emergency or other vehicles.
In emergencies, law enforcement and other emergency vehicles are not required to follow the road rules.
Accidents and emergencies can happen anywhere
No matter what type of road you're on it's important to expect the unexpected. In an emergency situation it's not always possible for first responders to stop in a location that has good visibility. You should always drive to the conditions and if you see an emergency or enforcement vehicle then you need to slow down as quickly and as safely as possible.
Give space to emergency workers and reduce your speed even if you are on a road with multiple lanes. When you slow down you help to ensure that everyone can get home safely.
Emergency services workers and enforcement workers are doing their jobs to help protect all of us.
Accidents and emergencies can happen anywhere
No matter what type of road you're on it's important to expect the unexpected. In an emergency situation it's not always possible for first responders to stop in a location that has good visibility. You should always drive to the conditions and if you see an emergency or enforcement vehicle then you need to slow down as quickly and as safely as possible.
Give space to emergency workers and reduce your speed even if you are on a road with multiple lanes. When you slow down you help to ensure that everyone can get home safely.
Emergency services workers and enforcement workers are doing their jobs to help protect all of us.
Why has this rule been introduced?
Incidents on Victorian roads place first responders and others involved at a high risk of being struck by passing vehicles or debris.
Near misses are common. A recent survey of more than 1,600 emergency service and enforcement workers revealed that in the past three years:
- 17% had a ‘near miss’ involving a passing vehicle on four or more occasions
- 3% had been injured while evading a passing vehicle
- 8% had their vehicle struck by a passing vehicle
- 23% of those involved in an incident had consequential mental health issues.
The rule was introduced in line with the existing rules where you must give way to vehicles with red, blue and purple flashing lights. Yellow or amber lights weren't included as they can be used on a variety of vehicles for different reasons and may confuse drivers. While the rule doesn't cover tow trucks and others working close to the road, we would expect drivers to use common sense when passing hazards, such as broken down vehicles with tow trucks helping out, at a safe speed.
You can be fined if you don't obey this rule however Victoria Police's main goal is to educate everyone about safe speeds when passing incidents or hazards.
Why has this rule been introduced?
Incidents on Victorian roads place first responders and others involved at a high risk of being struck by passing vehicles or debris.
Near misses are common. A recent survey of more than 1,600 emergency service and enforcement workers revealed that in the past three years:
- 17% had a ‘near miss’ involving a passing vehicle on four or more occasions
- 3% had been injured while evading a passing vehicle
- 8% had their vehicle struck by a passing vehicle
- 23% of those involved in an incident had consequential mental health issues.
The rule was introduced in line with the existing rules where you must give way to vehicles with red, blue and purple flashing lights. Yellow or amber lights weren't included as they can be used on a variety of vehicles for different reasons and may confuse drivers. While the rule doesn't cover tow trucks and others working close to the road, we would expect drivers to use common sense when passing hazards, such as broken down vehicles with tow trucks helping out, at a safe speed.
You can be fined if you don't obey this rule however Victoria Police's main goal is to educate everyone about safe speeds when passing incidents or hazards.
