189.930 Right-of-way to emergency vehicles -- Blocking or following emergency
536 words·~2 min read·
/ky/189-930A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.
vehicles -- Driving over unprotected hoses of fire department.
(1)Upon the approach of an emergency vehicle equipped with, and operating, one
or more flashing, rotating, or oscillating red or blue lights, visible under normal
conditions from a distance of five hundred
(500)feet to the front of the emergency
vehicle; or the driver is given audible signal by siren, exhaust whistle, or bell, the
driver of every other vehicle shall yield the right-of-way, immediately drive to a
position parallel to, and as close as possible to, the edge or curb of the highway
clear of any intersection, and stop and remain stopped until the emergency vehicle
has passed, except when otherwise directed by a police officer or firefighter.
(2)Upon the approach of any emergency vehicle, operated in conformity with the
provisions of subsection
(1)of this section, the operator of every vehicle shall
immediately stop clear of any intersection and shall remain stopped until the
emergency vehicle has passed, unless directed otherwise by a police officer or
firefighter.
(3)No operator of any vehicle, unless he or she is on official business, shall follow any
emergency vehicle being operated in conformity with the provisions of subsection
(1)of this section closer than five hundred
(500)feet, nor shall he or she drive into,
or park the vehicle into, or park the vehicle within, the block where the vehicle has
stopped in answer to an emergency call or alarm unless he or she is directed
otherwise by a police officer or firefighter.
(4)No vehicle, train, or other equipment shall be driven over any unprotected hose of a
fire department when the hose is laid down on any street, private driveway, or track
for use at any fire or fire alarm unless the fire department official in command
consents that the hose be driven over.
(5)The provisions of subsection
(6)of this section shall apply to any driver
approaching a stationary:
(a)Emergency vehicle or public safety vehicle, when the emergency vehicle or
public safety vehicle is giving a signal by displaying alternately flashing
yellow, red, red and white, red and blue, or blue lights; or
(b)Disabled vehicle, when the disabled vehicle is displaying some type of
warning signal, such as emergency flashers, flares, or retroreflective signals.
(6)The driver of a vehicle that is approaching a vehicle described in subsection
(5)of
this section shall, while proceeding with due caution:
(a)Yield the right-of-way by moving to a lane not adjacent to that of the vehicle,
if:
1. The person is driving on a highway having at least four
(4)lanes, with at
least two
(2)lanes proceeding in the same direction as the approaching
vehicle; and
2. It is possible to make the lane change with due regard to safety and
traffic conditions; or
(b)Reduce the speed of the vehicle, maintaining a safe speed to road conditions,
if the road has less than four
(4)lanes or if changing lanes would be
impossible or unsafe.
(7)This section does not operate to relieve the person who drives an emergency vehicle
from the duty to operate the vehicle with due regard for the safety of all persons
using the highway.