What should you do if you encounter emergency vehicles responding with lights and sirens?

When you encounter emergency vehicles responding with lights and sirens, yielding the right-of-way and giving them space is crucial for ensuring their effective response. Emergency responders often need to reach incidents quickly, and they may need to maneuver around traffic. By yielding, you allow them to navigate through the road safely and efficiently, reducing the risk of an accident.

Stopping in place may seem reasonable in some situations, but it can create hazards if there are vehicles behind you that do not expect you to stop suddenly. Continuing to drive without yielding could interfere with the emergency vehicle's progress, potentially leading to dangerous situations. Also, accelerating to pass could create additional risks, as it takes valuable time that the emergency vehicle might need. Therefore, yielding the right-of-way not only complies with traffic laws but also promotes public safety during emergencies.