Emergency services and rescue workers must get to the scene of the accident as quickly as possible. The rescue lane is intended to help on multi-lane roads. But when exactly does it have to be formed?
Motorists must form an emergency lane on motorways or multi-lane non-urban roads as soon as they drive at walking speed or the traffic comes to a standstill. There is no time for reflection or assessment, as a judgment of the Oldenburg Higher Regional Court (Az.: 2 Ss 137/22) shows, to which the ADAC refers.
In the case, a man was driving in the middle lane of a three-lane freeway. Due to a construction site, traffic came to a standstill and in some cases came to a standstill.
But although many other cars had already formed an emergency lane, the man with his car stayed in the middle lane. A passing police patrol warned him. The District Court of Vechta imposed a fine of 230 euros.
On the other hand, the man lodged an objection: he would have needed a short assessment time to check whether the formation of the rescue lane was necessary. The traffic jam had just developed when he was warned.
The Higher Regional Court of Oldenburg finally confirmed the judgment of the district court in the second instance. Because according to the road traffic regulations, drivers must form an emergency lane as soon as the cars are driving at walking speed or come to a standstill.
According to the chamber, both of these do not have to last for a certain period of time. The alley must be formed immediately, a period for reflection cannot be found in the law. This is all the more true in the present case because the man could have expected longer periods of standstill due to the stop-and-go traffic.
He had to pay the fine and also bear the costs of the proceedings. He avoided a driving ban because an ambulance had not been specifically obstructed.