ett 18 é i 1T AMAZES me to no end the number of peo- ple who go into an absolute panic when there’s an emergency vehicle nearby. An ambulance, fire truck and/or police car with its fights a-blazing and sirens a- wailing does not Armageddon make, but it does mean that something's afoot. The procedure a driver is to follow when confronted by an emergency vehicle responding to an emergency call is pretty straight forward but definitely not written in stone. Generally, and regard- less of the direction an emer- gency vehicle is coming from, drivers are to move their vehi- cles as close to the nearest curb as possible (usually the right-side curb; the left side if on the left-side of a one way street) and stop, proceeding only when said emergency vehicle has passed. This procedure is covered in Section 179 of the Motor Vehicle Act. Unfortunately, the mighty Act does not men- tion anything about using common sense which, in this case, it should. For example, it mentions “as near as possible” to the nearest curb. If there is a car or a bunch of cars already positioned on your right, dri- ving up the street a few blocks to find your own curb- side haven is counter-produc- tive. ie: ONE INTE ROMA I Ted Leyla gi ee red light, which is pretty much required when an emer- Shaun ve vehicle is doing its td ey vehicle is doing its Coniin As I mentioned, it may be gags your house on fire — it may even be you that's on fire — so giving way to an emer- gency vehicle responding to an emergency isn’t just a law, it's common sense. Please use it. 1f you have none, get some. SEEGS TOUTE ASI reg a OR LESS, PLUS ENVIRONMENT CHARGES ANO- TAXES Peres a See TE TG AOVERTISING D CLASSIFIEDS 989-0511 GBE-E222 Please keep in mind the essence of what you are try- ing to accomplish: You are INCLUDES: lubrication’ up to 5 litres of Protec 10W36 motor oil; new oil filter; metric filters extra; most cars; ack for details. trying to make as much room as possible for the emergency vehicle to pass, in other words, to immediately yield the right of way. Some people seem reluc- tant to do this for fear of “giv- ing up their place in line.” Tough. Give up your “place.” After ail, it may be your house that’s on fire. Keep in mind that while moving to the side of the road is your first priority, coming to a stop is a close second. Some drivers go into a chaot- ic state when confronted by an emergency vehicle and will simply stop in the middle of the road. I've noticed, also, that dri- vers who have a tough time parallel parking also find it difficult to judge where the curb actually is: moving over a foot or two and then stop- ping is almost as useless as not moving over at all, folks. Get a measuring tape, if you must, but you should know how wide your car is before you even learn to drive it. The biggest reason | wish that the Act mentioned the use of common sense stems from another occurrence I’ve often noticed: If an emer- gency vehicle has found it easier to meve along on your right, maybe driving along the shoulder when all else is a jam, then, for goodness sake, folks. keep to the left! Also keep in mind that emergency vehicles usually travel in packs: If you see a fire truck, expect an ambu- lance to be nearby. If you see an ambulance, expect a police car. You may have noticed that a police cruiser will, on occa- sion. zip past you without sounding a siren or flashing a * Prices may vary on luxury and diese! ~<.uipped vehicles. Ask for details y, includes: Labour to install kg new spark plugs; Perform mM cylinder balance test; Check and adjust timing; Check and q wiring, distributer cap, rotor; Check P.C.V, valve; test H.T. CARS PLUS TAXES w Check and adjust idle speeds (rpm's); Final igni- tion i Road test. Most cars & light pick-ups. Vans and mini-vans extra. Ask for details. Labour cniy- system analysis; g OR LESS MOST 6-CYL. V6 & V8 CARS PLUS TAXES parts extra IAN WILSON FULLERTON ESSO 1801 CAPILANO ROAD NORTH VANCOUVER 984-9194 © GERRY GRACA DELBROOK ESSO 3707 DELBROOK NORTH VANCOUVER 987-2515 Please phone for an appointment. Offer expires March 30, ‘96. Checkpoint retailers install national quality brand name aute parts. Pyles TR ea Gabyiel AV coun MILO VANAELST AMBLESIDE ESSO 1392 MARINE DRIVE WEST VANCOUVER 922-3525 © 922-0138 We accept the following: "EMONROEF KRALINATOR FUTERS ep, PETER WILLONER & TONY HORVATH MOUNTAIN HIGHWAY ESSO 2747 MOUNTAIN HIGHWAY NORTH VANCOUVER 985-5712 EES WALKER FRAM XS EP Purctatac .