Can you temporarily park in the emergency lane?
2 Answers
Emergency lanes are not for temporary parking. They are reserved for ambulances, rescue vehicles, police cars, and other emergency vehicles. Regular vehicles are not allowed to park there. If an emergency occurs, you should stop at a service area. The emergency lane on highways is a lifeline, exclusively for emergency vehicles. Except in cases of vehicle breakdown, no vehicle is permitted to park in the emergency lane at any time. Otherwise, according to traffic laws, the driver will face a fine and a deduction of 6 points from their license. If a vehicle is involved in an accident or breaks down and needs to stop temporarily in the emergency lane, the driver must use hazard lights as a warning and place a warning triangle at least 150 meters behind the vehicle to alert oncoming traffic.
I often drive on highways and fully understand the rules regarding emergency lanes. This area is absolutely not for casual stops unless your vehicle completely breaks down or is involved in a traffic accident. Legally, it's called a life-saving corridor, reserved exclusively for emergency vehicles like ambulances and fire trucks. Temporary parking by private cars is illegal, captured by traffic cameras nationwide with a standard penalty of 6 demerit points and a 200 yuan fine. Even if you encounter an unavoidable situation requiring a stop, you must follow three steps: turn on hazard warning lights, place a warning triangle 150 meters behind the vehicle, and quickly move all passengers to the safety area outside the guardrail. During regular rest stops at service areas, I've seen too many drivers use the emergency lane for bathroom breaks or driver changes, only to have police cars arrive minutes later with flashing lights to issue tickets. Actually, drinking some hot tea to stay alert before long-distance driving is more important to avoid fatigued driving.
