Why aren't there special passing lanes for emergencies?

Question

How come there aren't any special lanes for firetrucks, ambulances, police cars, or any other type of special emergency?

Wouldn't it be a lot easier for them to get by rather than wait for cars to get out of the way?

Answer 1

Rarely do I see an emergency vehicle trying to get by me in a traffic back up. They know to come from the direction that traffic is NOT backed up.

Answer 2

I agree that it would make sense but the cost would be too high and as for people that abuse this lane, we cant even control drunk drivers....

Answer 3

It's great in theory but just wouldn't work in real life.  Think about how much it would cost to add another lane to every highway.  You couldn't just use one that's already there. It would cause more traffic.  And in relation to how many cars/trucks that use highways, emergency vehicles are few in number. Think back to the last 10 times you were driving on a highway.  How many times were there ambulance/fire trucks/police cars etc that went by?  MAYBE once or twice.

*edit*

Money is a big factor in real life.  Ideally, safety should override money but it's not how it works.

You should also consider the fact that no one that works in the industry is complaining.  They don't see a need for impossible things like what you are suggesting.

Answer 4

Motor ways have the hard shoulder - an extra lane for use in emergencies.

Dual carriageways tend to have wide banks to either side for similar reasons.

In a road with no central reservation, any large accident is going to block both lanes, allowing the emergency services to use the offside lane to get to it.

Where do you live that doesn't have such commonsence precautions?

Answer 5

The truth is if every driver "pulled to the right for sirens and lights" then there wouldn't be a need to a special emergency lane.  Most freeways are equipped with berms that will allow for this.

Granted not everyone follows this rule and it's especially difficult in bumber to bumber traffic, but it is doable.

Answer 6

It is an interesting idea, but also unfeasible.  To create an extra lane on every road or even just main thoroughfares would cost us taxpayers billions of dollars.  It would also take away fast amounts of cumulative land from other potential uses and cut into limited residential land.  Even if you did efficiency would only be improved slightly.  You might argue that you can't put a price on those few lives that would be saved each year, but such a massive undertaking would require a vast amount of time.  In the meantime it would in fact take lives by placing machinery on busy roads, slowing traffic and taking up the space emergency vehicles already have.  The lives saved vs. lives lost would ultimately cancel each other out while costing billions for a project that would likely be outdated and unnecessary by the time it was finished.

Answer 7

Do you have any idea what that would have cost society over the last 100 years?  Land and roads (that nobody drives on) are not free.  They'll have to be satisfied with the hardened shoulder, which also wasn't free.

Answer 8

The inside shoulders can be used for this,  if there are any.   Mostly,  this is not done to lower highway construction costs.

Most states still have laws on their books that require motorists to move to the right and slow or stop to clear the way for emergency vehicles.   I strongly favor  writing very steep citations for those that don't.     The biggest problem is stupid people who don't think they need to move over and those who won't help by making them room.

Answer 9

I agree with what you are talking about and wish there were such a thing, but people not in emergencies would probably take advantage of them in various ways.

Answer 10

to costly with very little benefit. tell me how many fire trucks have you seen held up. Do we need to pave every square inch of america

Answer 11

Roads/highways are very costly. Millions of dollars per mile. Adding an extra lane to only be used for emergencies is not a good use of public money. People are supposed to pull over when an emergency vehicle approaches with its lights/siren on.

Answer 12

How about all of the lazy inconsiderate people just get out of the way!!!!!