DEAR ABBY: What is the proper way to defer right-of-way to an ambulance or other emergency vehicle? I drive on a two-lane highway to and from work every day, and have had a couple of close calls recently with drivers in front of me slamming on their brakes and stopping in the roadway while waiting for an emergency vehicle to go by.
I was always taught that if an emergency vehicle is behind you, to pull as far to the right side of the road as possible and allow the vehicle to pass on your left. But what do you do when it's going in the other direction? Surely stopping in the road is not the answer. Please set me and my fellow commuters straight. In the meantime, I'll be ... SLAMMING ON THE BRAKES IN ALABAMA
DEAR SLAMMING: I, too, was taught that when an emergency vehicle with a flashing light and a siren approaches from either direction that all drivers should move as far to the right as possible. This will allow the emergency vehicle access to the middle of the road, if necessary. Simply slamming on one's brakes is not enough. It can cause gridlock and bring the emergency vehicle to a stop, resulting in loss of property or even someone's life.