Examples of vehicles with blue flashing lights

Emergency vehicles use blue flashing lights. If you see or hear one, move out of its way as soon as it's safe and legal to do so. As well as police, fire and ambulance, you will see blue lights on vehicles for bomb disposal, coastguard, mine rescue, organ transplant and mountain rescue.

Exemptions to road traffic laws when using blue flashing lights

Emergency response vehicles are exempt from a number of rules that would hold them up, regardless of whether the blue lights are on:

• use a siren or other audible warning outside of permitted hours
• leaving the vehicle while the engine is still running
• parking in areas where it's not permitted to park, including facing traffic at night
• stopping on zig-zag lines
• driving in bus or cycle lanes
• exceeding the speed limit (where the driver is qualified)
• driving on the motorway hard shoulder, with or against the flow of traffic
• passing to the right of a keep left sign
• treating a red traffic light like a give way sign
• treating a stop sign like a give way sign.