Does anyone know the law regarding emergency vehicles in built-up areas?

I live in a quiet village on the A19 which has a 30mph speed limit. Regularly, though, police and ambulance vehicles - and especially the fire brigade - hare through the village at incredible speeds.

People say that I would not complain if it were my house on fire that they were rushing to, but then they would not like to be bowled over by a speeding fire engine on its way to my house, either.

There are a lot of old people in the village and they cannot cross the road quickly. I just wondered if speed limits did not apply to emergency vehicles with blue lights flashing and sirens blaring.

Your comments:

To try to answer most of your points, emergency vehicles with audio/visual warning devices (blue lights and sirens) operating have an exemption to normal speed limits. Having said that, they are not exempt from driving safely and with due care and attention. For instance, red traffic lights are treated as a 'Give Way', and it must be safe to pass through the junction before doing so. The individual driver, who will have received special training, should be highly vigilant to aspects like pedestrians and other vehicles and should adjust their speed and manner of driving. Emergency vehicle drivers will, and have been, prosecuted for driving either dangerously or without due care and attention in the past when the manner of their driving has fallen below the standard required.

Paul Beckwith, York

Updated: 09:50 Tuesday, October 18, 2005