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Driving 101 Part 6: How to deal with emergency vehicles Flashing red lights in your rear view mirror mean you must slow down, move to your right and stop near the curb or right edge of the roadway. The Ontario Highway Traffic act actually states that you must immediately bring your vehicle to a standstill, but I prefer you come to a safe stop... to your right... so we can pass you on your left. If you slow down but stay in the left lane, and wait for an emergency vehicle to pass you on your right you are putting the emergency responders in danger, and you are wasting the crucial response time that someone is counting on. If you are driving and you see flashing red lights stopped ahead in the distance, please slow down and move into a lane that is further away from the lights if possible. As you drive by the lights, do so with extreme caution, look for a police officer Const. Chris Borak directing traffic, or emergency workers on the roadway. Resist the temptation to watch them in action; it only puts people in danger as the average person typically drives towards where they are looking. If there are flashing red lights and a siren sound coming towards you please slow down and move to the right of your roadway and stop, wait for the emergency vehicle to pass you before you continue, but take a moment to see if there are any other emergency vehicles coming before you do so. Contact me personally for crime prevention tips, at 905-878-5511 extension 2470, or by e-mailing chris.borak@hrps.on.ca. Please reserve the 911 system for emergency calls only. --Const. Chris Borak is the community support officer for District 1