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On every drive, you probably see at least one emergency vehicle, especially if you are going along busy roads or you live in a city. You might be wondering what they must have on them and what specifications they need to make sure that other road users are aware of their presence, and what to do in the act of an emergency when they need to get out of the way quickly. Here is what every emergency vehicle must have.
#1 It must have emergency lights
This gives a visual warning to road users that something is happening. High-end emergency vehicles often use blue and red lights to stand out from usual headlights, and they often ‘flash’ to catch people’s attention. Emergency lights that are orange are often on construction loads, LED lights for cars when escorting wide loads, and recovery trucks. This can be a warning to other people on the road the vehicle might be towing something, going slowly, is pulled over, or that there might be a workforce on the road.
#2 Sirens
Sirens are used on high-end emergency vehicles, such as ambulances, police cars, and fire trucks. This is something that is really important, as if they are not seen, they will definitely be heard. There are three different sirens that are rotated to stop people from blocking out the sound if they are concentrating on driving. These vehicles need sirens to help them out in areas of heavy traffic or to alert people that they are coming at incredibly high speeds and shouldn’t be detained.
#3 Space
Every model of car used for emergency vehicles is chosen because of their potential space to fit pretty much anything within. This can be used to carry riot gear, medical equipment, and even people. This is something that is really important to consider, which is why many ambulances and fire trucks are custom built, as no models of cars or vans can support the equipment or give the safety of a purpose-built vehicle.
#4 Easy to control
The vehicle must be easy to control at higher speeds. This is to allow police cars to chase vehicles and ambulances to get to where they need to be without causing more accidents. They also need to be agile to get to restricted areas such as tight country roads and tight turning spaces. This is really important to make sure that patients can be accessed and people can be treated quickly.
A few final thoughts
There are a large number of things that every emergency vehicle must have, whether it is custom-built or used as a leisure car as well as a professional vehicle. For a start, they must be easy to control and agile.
They should also be highly visible through both the use of sirens and flashing LED lights which sets them apart from other vehicles when on a call. They should also have the space to accommodate the needs of the driver, especially if they are a first response unit. These are all essential for emergency vehicles to do their jobs well and alert other road users of their presence.
