In holiday periods and long weekends it is very common for citizens to take the car to make a road trip to their second residence or any other tourist destination. This increase in vehicles on the road network ends up causing traffic incidents. Therefore, on designated dates, the General Directorate of Traffic prepares special devices that facilitate the mobility and safety of drivers. Despite the deployment of the DGT, it is inevitable that long queues form on some roads during departure and return operations.
These are traffic jams that both drivers and passengers detest due to the loss of time they entail, and which can also last for several kilometres. They also generate an increase in fuel consumption, higher levels of air pollution and more collisions between vehicles.
And these are not the only consequences. When a traffic jam forms on the highway, emergency vehicles are often prevented from having a smooth passage through that section. Ambulances, firefighters or police must travel the kilometers that the retention lasts, avoiding vehicles with difficulties, maneuvers that require valuable time that can be decisive in, for example, saving a life.
A problem that other countries take into account and for which measures are taken. In Germany, for example, regulations oblige drivers to leave a free lane when a traffic jam forms. In this way, emergency vehicles are not hindered and can circulate quickly if they need to.
This was explained by the Twitter account @RincnCuriosoo: “When traffic comes to a complete stop in Germany, drivers (by law) must move to the edge of each side to create an open lane for emergency vehicles.” The tweet clearly showed in an image how this lane is formed, which surprised a large number of users who expressed their astonishment in the comments.
As the General Club of German Automobiles (ADAC) explains, this maneuver is known by the name of Rettungsgasse, which can be translated as “free lane”, “emergency lane” or “rescue lane”. According to this prestigious association, “the lane does not have to be created in the event of a traffic jam, but rather when the traffic begins to slow down or when driving at walking speed”. The rule applies to highways with two, three and four lanes, although the operation is the same. Anyone who drives in the left lane always leans to their left. On the other hand, if driving in any other lane, the driver must move to the right side.
In principle, the shoulder should always be free. “There are exceptions when the police ask drivers to drive over them or when there is no way to form an emergency lane without using the shoulder due to lack of space,” the ADAC detailed. Logically, other users are not allowed to use it to skip the queue. And as for motorists, there are no exceptions and, therefore, they cannot drive in the rescue lane or on the shoulder.
Failure to comply with the regulations has consequences in Germany. The fines for not forming the rescue lane correctly range between 200 and 320 euros, with the withdrawal of two points from the driving license and the ban on driving for a month. In the case of driving through one of these spaces, the penalties range from 280 to 320 euros, depending on the severity, and also entail the deduction of two points and the prohibition of driving in one month.
This rescue lane is not exclusive to German roads. There are several European countries that contemplate similar rules in their regulations, including Austria, Hungary, Belgium, Luxembourg, Poland, Switzerland, Slovakia, Slovenia or the Czech Republic. In others, such as France or Spain, there is no obligation to form these lanes, although there is an obligation to facilitate the overtaking maneuver for emergency vehicles. In contrast, in Italy or the Netherlands no special measure is contemplated.
