Flashing blue lights: Here’s what you need to know about unmarked police/traffic vehicles
It's not every day that you see an unmarked police vehicle with blue lights flashing but after a reader sent Review a video of one, the question once again arose as to the law regarding blue lights and its usage.
POLOKWANE – According to the reader, the vehicle she was driving behind switched on their hazards and she thought is was due to the rain. However, upon approaching the intersection on Vermikuliet and Landdros Mare, the driver switched on the blue lights. The vehicle was not speeding nor did it cross the intersection illegally.
Review spoke to a source within the traffic department who explained that only registered vehicles are issued with blue lights. These include all ranks within the South African Police Service (SAPS) and Municipal Police Services, traffic officers and the SANDF Military Police. These lights can be used for any emergency that the official is on their way to, be it an accident, state of emergency, bomb threat etc.
Should the need arise that an official needs to cross an intersection illegally the blue lights and siren should be on but they should still slow down to ensure it is safe to cross at that given time. If is happens that they are involved in an accident and the lights and siren were not on they can be found guilty of manslaughter. A siren need not be used if an official is approaching a scene where a crime is in progress and they do not want to alert the suspected criminals of their approach, he adds.
In a case where an official is driving at a the legal speed limit with their lights on,the official wants to be visible and alert motorists that officials are approaching.
Information from SAPS states that the use of identification lights is regulated by Regulation 176 and Regulation 185 of the National Road Traffic Regulations, 2000. This states that identification lights and sirens are applicable to the vehicle and not to the person operating the vehicle. For instance, should a designated official be using a different vehicle, they may not place the identification lights on said vehicle. Only registered vehicles may use lights.
The source adds that the vehicle in the video belongs to a senior superintendent. If a resident suspects an official of abusing this privilege they are advised to visit the Traffic Department and lay a complaint in writing, or lodge a complaint with the Department of Transport.
