AIBU to think drivers should reverse rather than cross red lights?

[BrickBiscuit]

Drivers queuing at red lights are now beeping when a blue-light vehicle comes up behind, even with sirens off. This is to alert those at the front to cross the line. However, I will never cross a red light for an emergency vehicle (unless instructed by a police officer). Wouldn't it be better for the whole queue to reverse to the roadside and create a clear lane? This is the same manoeuvre as moving forwards to do so, which is extremely common but can leave those at the front nowhere to go except through the red light. This would need everyone to reverse, each to make room for the one in front. Nobody need cross the line.

YABU: no, keep pulling over forwards. Those at the front cross the red light.
YANBU: yes, start pulling over backwards and leave the red light clear.

You will still get a ticket for crossing a red light even if it’s to make room for an emergency vehicle

Neither. Reversing a whole queue of traffic is just if not more dangerous. .

Potentially if junctions were designed better the stop line would be perhaps 1 and 1/2 car lengths from the actual light stop at major junctions where emergency vehicles are frequent. This would allow such cars to pull forward without crossing the lights.

A more long term fix would be a change in driver behavior where drivers naturally pull towards the curb when stopping. Im sure I saw some video, perhaps Germany where on dual carriageway the reaction to stopping traffic is pull left or right depending on your lane and almost create a whole middle lane.

Of course cyclists probably will be unhappy that they can't go flying up the inside of stopped cars, but perhaps they too should change their behaviour to overtake properly...

I'm not sure that reversing towards a rapidly approaching emergency vehicle would be a good idea.

Move over if you can but don't go past the red light. It's not ideal from the point of view of helping the emergency vehicle to get where it's going but that's just the way it is, sadly.

Yes, you're right. This has been well covered on other threads.

The emergency vehicle would have seen the queue and be going slow enough to react to reversing lights.

They dont want you to go through red lights. They want to get to the emergency safely, noy have to divert to an accident caused by a "helpful" driver.

They will go round you.

Emergency vehicles can also get tickets going through red lights. Just stay still and let them navigate their own way round you. They are trained to do this.

Have you ever been in a situation where a number of vehicles all have to reverse? I have, following a motorway closure. Even though there were police officers there to direct people it was an utter shit-show. Too many drivers are unable to reverse more than a few metres while keeping in a straight line. If they can't do it when they're being directed by police, I have no confidence they'll be able to do it when they're doing it by themselves while also trying to work out the intentions of the other people reversing around them.

If the ambulance has sirens off then why are people moving at all? The ambulance uses its sirens to signal they need to get through quickly IF safe to do so.

nobody should be undertaking unsafe manoeuvres (which arguably in most cases going through a red light and reversing on a busy road would be)

You cannot cross the stop line while the light is red, regardless of any emergency vehicle coming up. It's their problem and they're trained to get through. Facilitate their passage if possible, but otherwise, do nothing.

Was following a learner a couple of days ago and a police car was coming the other way, following a single car. He pulled in to let the PC pass, and the learner stopped exactly opposite the now stopped car on the other side of the road. Either the instructor or the learner panicked, but it is typical of what happens - car on my side didn't need to stop or slow at all. Total failure to read the road.

Both of your options are dangerous and wrong. Pull over to let an emergency vehicle pass if it's safe to do so, but don't drive forward through a red light and don't start reversing in a traffic queue. Total madness.

Beeping drivers should rein it in as well. Emergency vehicles have flashing lights and sirens - they don't need other drivers blowing their horns to 'help'.

You really shouldn’t be driving if you think this

I don’t think emergency vehicles are allowed to go through red lights either are they unless they’re completely sure it’s safe? Best thing to do is wait for the lights to turn then allow the emergency vehicle to overtake safely

Neither option. Wait until the lights change. Emergency vehicles now turn their sirens off for that reason.

If you can't reverse into a parking space from a gap in stationary traffic then perhaps you shouldn't be driving.

It would be the same manoeuvre as reversing into a parking space at the roadside. Putting the whole queue into reverse like your situation would simply crash it into the emergency vehicle. The queue is stationary. The emergency vehicle is approaching it slowly. As each person (starting at the back) reverses to the roadside, they create space for the car in front to do so, and so on. It would all happen at similar speed to the way people currently pull in forwards to create a lane for the emergency vehicle.

It’s a ridiculous solution to a problem that doesn’t exist.

Everyone reversing is slower and inherently more dangerous because sight lines are worse, not to mention people are more likely to make mistakes and not check properly before reversing if they feel rushed or under pressure.
If you can safely pull over then do so. if you can’t then you wait, the light will change to green soon enough. If people are beeping let them.

The ambulance will go round oeople if it is safe.

The only time the reversing makes sense is creating an extra lane if both sides of the traffic are stationary.

This was my first thought as well when reading this thread.

How many people on Mumsnet would be honest enough to say that they can't reverse their car in a straight line for more than a few yards?

I often travel in single lane tracks, and the number of women (yep, it's often us) who are driving a 4x4 and refuse to note the passing spaces immediately behind them, then expect me to reverse half a mile up a road because they can't.

And I know they can't, because when I've had traffic behind me and someone gets out and shouts at them, they HAVE to reverse at this point.

And the shit-show that ensues.... wobbling around, clipping hedges, complete inability to drive any way but forwards.

It's not reversing in a straight line. It's the same manoeuvre as reversing from a standstill into a parking space at the kerb (although from a shorter distance).

That's the only time I'm suggesting it.

Advanced driving would teach you to leave plenty of space between you and the car in front in stationary traffic so that you can make way if necessary. As long as one person does that and can then move forward and to the side by a few metres then the whole queue can, and the ambulance can get through. Everyone reversing seems an unnecessarily complicated way of achieving what a few moderately attentive drivers could enable anyway, with the danger or reversing in a queue when other motorists, the ambulance and pedestrians would not be expecting it being eliminated.

Surely you just ignore the person who is beeping, then when the traffic lights change you make way for the emergency vehicle.

If you cross the line at best you risk getting a ticket and at worst you risk causing an accident.

Don't emergency vehicles turn their siren off in this type of situation so you don't feel pressurised into making these choices?

I cannot imagine the carnage if a queue of averagely skilled motorists tried to reverse out of the way together! Bless you for your optimism and positive view of other people OP.

Nobody teaches you to stop with a space between you and the stop line. The car at the red light has nowhere to go.