Fri Oct 06, 2006 9:51 pm
Although I'm only 14 years old and can't even drive yet (much less get a job as a police officer, firefighter, etc.), I still can't stress enough that it is best to ensure safety of others. Therefore, drive with normal lighting and siren (if emergency call). Never turn off the siren unless A.) you are in the middle of nowhere or B.) you're already there or C.) you have a better excuse.
Being courteous does not ensure safety. Sure, that mother of the baby might be happy that you turned off your siren before facing her and her child, but let's consider the options: have a happy mother, or prevent a total wreck at an intersection and getting to the incident on time.
I guarantee that the person who's house is on fire will be happier that you arrived on time than the mother.
Lights are an obvious story. I'm not going to get in another argument about EV lights, but remember this: leave them on.
Back to the siren...
I'm absolutely positive that if you got into a wreck and your siren was not on you would obvously be charged for that (and, chances are, lose). Intersections are the most dangerous part of roads... I don't understand why you would want to turn your siren off.
Now, about your "Drive as if they don't hear the siren" theory. I do realize your point here, but that only promotes good driving skills and leaving lights on. It doesn't say that you can turn your siren off. "Oh, sure, they can't hear the siren, so I'll just turn it off while I cross this intersec-" BAM... collision. Of course they can hear your siren. You say that you have a "200 Watt 480K into TS100 speakers" and it's "REALLY efficient and LOUD... makes some people wince." Now, I know cars aren't THAT soundproof. What would be the use for car horns if cars were soundproof? To warn pedestrians? Not really. Car horns are MUCH quieter than sirens, yet you can hear them all throughout cities across America.
How about, instead of "Drive as if they don't hear the siren", "Drive as if they don't see you"? Someone might not be able to see you coming up behind them with no siren/horns. Many drivers today don't pay attention at all to the road behind them. If you drive up behind someone, they might not notice that you're there until they get an earfull of a blasting siren.
And about the fact that "Many sirens are constantly blared, needlesly bothering everyone". Sure, I don't need to know that there's a firetruck two blocks away. One minute later I'm crossing an intersection... BOOM and I get instantly killed by a huge firetruck going at a good 40 MPH with no siren while running a red light.
Sirens make the road safer. They're not just there to have a switch in your dashboard and to add weight to your vehicle.
I agree with Jim. The safety of you/the public is MUCH more important than being courteous to other drivers.
If at first you don't succeed, destroy all evidence indicating that you tried.
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