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YourHub.com \\ Northglenn \\ Stories \\ Sound Off \\ Letter to the Editor

Pulling over, slowing down doesn't always work

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Contributed by: Richard Becker on 1/19/2006

In response to the item of January 19th concerning emergency vehicles, by Wendy Krajewski, requires a bit of clarification and comment based on personal experience and observation.

1. She urges drivers to ".....use caution while traveling by crash scenes or traffic stops", and "Use caution when passing through emergency scenes of driving by traffic stops. Please pay attention to people and emergency vehicles around you - reduce your speed, but keep up with the flow of traffic."!

When drivers actually do what she suggests, it is regarded as "Lookyloos", or "gawkers". I have always slowed down when driving past a scene of an accident, and watch out for personnel involved in the emergency, but have been given dirty looks by emergency personnel.

I developed that habit in the late '50s when I drove by an accident scene where a distraught mom suddenly jumped out of her vehicle and in front of mine to check on her child in the backseat. By driving slow, reaction time is better, and the driver has a better chance of observing potential dangers and thus able to react.

On more than one occasion over the years, I have slowed down to cautiously pass an accident scene only to have a police officer waving his arms like a windmill and screaming "move it, move it" and had the traffic moving past the scene at a speed over the posted speed limit, and apparently anyone driving the speed limit was expected to drive quickly by the scene.

On one occasion a few years ago, I was westbound on 120th Avenue approaching an accident scene at Sheridan at night.

Emergency vehicles with the headlight beams on bright facing Eastbound in the Westbound lanes and obscuring the vision of myself and others. I slowed down to figure out where to pass safely by when a blue-clad police officer directing traffic suddenly loomed before me out of the glare of bright lightes and flashing emergency lights. Judging by his gestures, facial expression and angry shouting, he was upset that I was not moving faster, but I was just being prudent because I did not want to pass the scene too fast, because there was also debris from the crash in my way.

2. The article also states: "Where possible, you must pull over to the right edge of the road."! Perhaps clarification of "possible" is needed:

On too many occasions, I have been in the right lane of a street or highway where there are two lanes of traffic moving in each direction as emergency vehicles approach from behind.

Traffic in the left lane next to the media abruptly moves to the right, without the drivers checking to make sure it is clear, as drivers already in the right lane are pulling over, to the right side of the road and nearly collide with other vehicles already in the right lane and pulling over.

In the case of two lanes of traffic moving in the same direction, as opposed to two-lane highways with a lane of traffic moving in each direction, it makes more sense for drivers in the left lane (where possible) to pull over to the median shoulder as traffic in the right lane pulls onto the right shoulder, to let emergency vehicles have the right of way.

On other occasions with two lanes of traffic moving in the same direction, drivers in the left lane suddenly pull to the right as emergency vehicles are going the opposite direction in the lanes on the other side of the median. This creates a problem for traffic in the right lane where there is no need to pull over because emergency vehicles are certainly not going to plow through the median when the have the right of way on the other side.

My vehicle has nearly been hit on several occasions due to the above situations.

Another note on driving courtesy is also in order. On occasion, the shoulder is lined with vehicles that had pulled over for passage of emergency vehicles, and sat there for a long time with signal light operating indicating a desire for a return to the traffic flow as self-righteous drivers who had pulled over behind me sped by and cut off my attemt to return to the traffic lane after the emergency vehicles have passed. On one occasion, I sat there for 45 minutes before I could get back on the road.

Richard Becker
(Former high school teacher trained in Driver's Education)
Broomfield

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John Eisel

Denver , COLORADO

John Eisel has posted 2865 stories and 12 comments since joining on 9/14/2005. John Eisel's average story rating is 4.39.

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