The Purpose of Green Emergency Vehicle Lights

People promptly know red and blue flashing lights belong to an emergency vehicle, but when green emergency vehicle lights are present on the road, people are often confused about the vehicle’s purpose. For example, people don’t know if the lights are used by a public official, a private citizen, or what driver’s responsibilities are when approached by a car or truck with green warning lights. Below we will go over the different situations where green emergency lights are used and what the reason may be that the warning lights are in use.

Homeland Security Uses Green Vehicle Lights

Beginning shortly after 9/11, Homeland Security began using green emergency lights on official vehicles. Additionally, some government and private security agencies that are protecting government-owned critical infrastructure also use green lights on their vehicles. Examples of government-owned infrastructure includes gas pipelines, dams, water storage facilities, airports, maritime facilities, and other areas that may be at risk of terrorist’s attacks. These vehicles use green lights so that they can be quickly recognized as security vehicles with the right to be near this government-owned property.

Green Fire Truck Lights Can Signify a Command Vehicle

Sometimes at the scene of an accident, firefighters and other emergency first responders need to have a command vehicle. The command vehicle is often brought to incidents where firemen need to have a mobile headquarters. Generally, these vehicles have everything the fire truck station house would have including tools, medical equipment, and other needed tools. Since these situations can often be chaotic, some fire departments will use green vehicle lights to easily let all firefighters know the exact location of the command vehicle. However, it is important to know that this colored light is simply used for ID purposes and doesn’t actually give the vehicle any special rights.

Volunteer Firefighters May Use Green Emergency Vehicle Lights

Every state in the United States has statutes that allow emergency vehicles to use certain colored warning lights. According to these statutes, many volunteer firefighters in various states are allowed to use green vehicle lights on their private vehicles. Unlike ambulances, police cruisers, and fire trucks, green emergency vehicle lights are usually used to politely request drivers give volunteer firefighters the right of way, but unlike the warning lights on police cruisers, fire trucks, and ambulances, green lights do not mandate drivers behave the way other emergency lights do. Additionally, in some states volunteer EMS workers are also allowed to use green lights on their personal vehicles when they are traveling to an emergency call.

As you can see from the information listed above, many different types of vehicles are permitted to use green emergency vehicle lights for a variety of different reasons. It is important to realize that in most cases, green warning lights are simply for identification or courtesy reasons, which mean drivers don’t have to do anything when approached by these lights. If you would like to know exactly which vehicles are permitted to use green lights in your jurisdiction, you should consult more formal sources.