Going to the DMV?

NY traffic law limits calls to which firefighters can drive

The 2005 Vehicle and Traffic Law—a law that took effect in New York more than 3 years ago—has recently become an issue again. In most parts of the country, states have apparatus-operation laws that are pretty cut and dry: You must have a commercial driver’s license (CDL) to drive any vehicle that weighs more than 26,000 lbs., including fire apparatus. However, the law passed in New York has a loophole that has some firefighters fuming. Specifically, the law states that a firefighter can drive a fire apparatus—without a CDL—to the scene of an alarm during an emergency, but they cannot operate the vehicle in a non-emergency situation (driving to training, parades, funerals, etc.)

Prior to this law, all New York firefighters had to do to drive their department’s apparatus was to get an older, senior member to train them on the apparatus. This included non-emergency driving for a certain number of hours, operating the pump or aerial at incidents, and when the senior member thought they were ready, driving to alarms.

But according to the NYS DMV, firefighters who have not obtained a CDL could be ticketed for driving out of class, even if they’ve previously trained in the operation of the apparatus. Further, if they’re involved in an accident, they—and their department—could be held liable.

To obtain a CDL, some training is required as well as taking a state DMV test. It has been argued in the past that this would bring a hardship to all fire departments in the state due to the additional training necessary. It would take a few years for all firefighters to get licensed.

Several bills have been introduced in the past month to try to change the outcome of this situation and exempt firefighters from the CDL law. Personally, I think it’s time for New York to require some type of standardized training in order to drive a fire apparatus, even if requiring them to get a CDL is not the answer. Only time will tell what will happen. Stay tuned for the outcome.

This situation may enlighten other departments around the country. Check with your local DMV or state to determine the requirements for your firefighters to drive fire apparatus. Let’s try to be proactive and solve this problem before someone becomes another statistic.

Bob Vaccaro has more than 30 years of fire-service experience. He is a former chief of the Deer Park (N.Y.) Fire Department. Vaccaro has also worked for the Insurance Services Office, The New York Fire Patrol and several major commercial insurance companies as a senior loss-control consultant.