Nova Scotia Emergency Vehicles: Pull Over or Exit the Roundabout

Make room for an approaching vehicle

For an emergency vehicle using flashing lights, a siren or both and approaching from ahead or behind on the relevant roadway, move right and stop completely. Remain stopped until it passes or a peace officer directs you to move. The handbook excludes an emergency vehicle on the other side of a divided highway.

The separate move-over rule addresses a vehicle already stopped beside the road. Do not answer an approaching-vehicle question with only the reduced passing speed for a roadside scene.

Keep the roundabout available

The handbook’s roundabout instructions describe an emergency vehicle with flashing lights and siren. Give it the whole roundabout to use.

If you see the emergency vehicle before entering a roundabout, pull right and stop to let it use the roundabout. If you are already circulating, take the nearest exit, then pull right and stop.

Stopping within the circular roadway can block the route the emergency vehicle needs. The handbook’s instruction is to clear the roundabout by exiting, rather than halt in front of an exit.

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Resume without crowding the response

Once the vehicle has passed and the road is safe, continue with normal observation and yielding. The handbook prohibits following an emergency fire vehicle within 150 m. Do not treat the space behind it as a way to move through traffic faster.