C-24.2, r. 49 - Regulation respecting emergency vehicles and vehicles equipped with flashing or rotating amber lights

Updated to 1 October 2024

This document has official status.

chapter C-24.2, r. 49

Regulation respecting emergency vehicles and vehicles equipped with flashing or rotating amber lights

Highway Safety Code

(chapter C-24.2, s. 618, par. 1 and s. 621, 1st par., subpar. 5).

CHAPTER I VEHICLE WHICH MAY BE RECOGNIZED AS AN EMERGENCY VEHICLE BY THE SOCIÉTÉ

1. The Société de l’assurance automobile du Québec recognizes a road vehicle as an emergency vehicle where a certificate of mechanical inspection issued under the Regulation respecting safety standards for road vehicles (chapter C-24.2, r. 32), less than one month from the date of the application for recognition, by a person authorized to inspect a road vehicle on its behalf, indicates that the vehicle conforms and that it is used mainly for one of the following purposes:

(1)  to rush medical personnel or medical equipment to a person in need of immediate medical care;

(2)  to rush a technician or first-aid equipment to a place where rapid intervention is required to provide immediate medical care;

(3)  to uphold the peace, maintain order and public safety, to prevent crime and the violation of Québec or Canadian statutes, or to track down the perpetrators, either:

(a)  by a policeman of the Sûreté du Québec or of a municipal police force using an unmarked vehicle;

(b)  by a person considered a peace officer under a federal or a Québec statute provided that his duties, on a regular basis, require the use of a vehicle recognized as an emergency vehicle and provided it is in the discharge of his duties;

(c)  by a special constable appointed in accordance with the Police Act (chapter P-13.1);

(4)   for the training courses offered by the École nationale de Police du Québec provided the vehicle is owned by it;

(5)  to rush to a place where there is a threat to the environment provided the vehicle is owned by the Ministère du Développement durable, de l’Environnement et des Parcs;

(6)  to rush to the site of a disaster provided the vehicle is owned by the Minister of Public Security.

O.C. 867-87, s. 1.

2. Where the Société recognizes a vehicle as an emergency vehicle, it shall issue the certificate of recognition and the sticker in Schedule I to its owner. The certificate is valid for 2 years and may be cancelled if the vehicle no longer complies with the criteria of recognition in section 1.

The sticker must be affixed to the lower left corner of the windshield.

O.C. 867-87, s. 2.

3. Renewal of the certificate of recognition shall be made under the same conditions as its issuance.

O.C. 867-87, s. 3.

4. A person who drives a recognized vehicle must have the certificate of recognition on his person.

O.C. 867-87, s. 4.

CHAPTER II VEHICLE THAT MAY BE EQUIPPED WITH FLASHING OR ROTATING AMBER LIGHTS

5. The Société recognizes that a road vehicle may be equipped with flashing or rotating amber lights if it is used for one of the following purposes:

(1)  to intercept road vehicles pursuant to the powers conferred by an Act or a Regulation;

(2)  if it is used either at reduced speed or to make repeated stops along a road in the course of work for a public service;

(3)  if it is used by a security agency bound by contract with a municipality, provided it is used exclusively for that purpose, to apply a municipal by-law respecting traffic only or to control traffic in an emergency;

(4)  if it must be equipped with such lights pursuant to a federal or provincial statute or regulation;

(5)  if it belongs to a municipality or if it is used to enforce a municipal by-law respecting traffic only;

(6)  if it is used by a security agency to patrol in shopping centres or industrial centres.

O.C. 867-87, s. 5; O.C. 1701-89, s. 1.

5.1. A motor vehicle with a net mass of more than 3 000 kg, of the truck type, except for a tow truck drawing a trailer or a semi-trailer equipped with a tank permanently attached thereto and that is not the fuel tank used for equipment parts for the trailer or semi-trailer, may be equipped with flashing or rotating amber lights.

Amber lights may be used solely for manoeuvres of the vehicle related to loading an unloading on the shoulder of the road and for loading and unloading on the shoulder of the road.

O.C. 1701-89, s. 2.

5.2. A motor vehicle used by a service of the media and belonging to the owner of a newspaper within the meaning of the Press Act (chapter P-19) or to a person empowered by a licence of the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission to operate a broadcasting transmitting undertaking that is identified in the name of that person or in another name and that is immobilized on the site of an event related to traffic may be equipped with flashing or rotating amber lights.

Amber lights may be used solely where the motor vehicle is immobilized on the site of an event related to traffic.

O.C. 1701-89, s. 2.

6. Sections 2 to 4 apply to this Chapter, with the necessary modifications.

The certificate of recognition and the sticker are prescribed in Schedule II.

O.C. 867-87, s. 6.

CHAPTER III THREE-WHEEL VEHICLE RECOGNIZED AS A MOPED FOR HANDICAPPED PERSONS (Implicitly revoked, 2008, chapter 14, s. 85)

O.C. 867-87, c. III.

DIVISION I GENERAL (Implicitly revoked, 2008, chapter 14, s. 85)

O.C. 867-87, Div. I.

7. The Société recognizes as a moped, by the issuance of the appropriate registration plate, a three-wheel passenger vehicle designed for the transportation of a handicapped person if the vehicle meets the standards established in this Chapter. (Implicitly revoked, 2008, chapter 14, s. 85)

O.C. 867-87, s. 7; S.Q. 1990, c. 19, s. 11.

8. The vehicle must be designed to carry only 1 person and to have an open body; it may however be equipped with a windshield made of a material that complies with standard ANSI-Z 26. (Implicitly revoked, 2008, chapter 14, s. 85)

O.C. 867-87, s. 8.

9. The vehicle must:

(1)  be equipped with a 1,000-watt electric motor or a motor having a piston displacement not in excess of 50 cm3;

(2)  be equipped with an automatic transmission;

(3)  have a mass not exceeding 100 kg;

(4)  not exceed 220 cm in length and 100 cm in width. (Implicitly revoked, 2008, chapter 14, s. 85)

O.C. 867-87, s. 9.

DIVISION II LIGHTING, SIGNS AND SIGNALS (Implicitly revoked, 2008, chapter 14, s. 85)

O.C. 867-87, Div. II.

10. The vehicle must be equipped with a white headlight installed on the vertical line at a height, from the ground, of 610 to 1,370 mm. (Implicitly revoked, 2008, chapter 14, s. 85)

O.C. 867-87, s. 10.

11. The vehicle must be equipped at the rear with 2 red lights lighted permanently and with 2 red stop lights, one on each side of the vertical line at the same height and as far apart as practicable. The height of the lights, from the ground, must be from 380 to 1,830 mm. (Implicitly revoked, 2008, chapter 14, s. 85)

O.C. 867-87, s. 11.

12. The vehicle must be equipped at the rear with 2 red or amber turn-signal lights, one on each side of the vertical line at the same height and as far apart as practicable. The height of the lights, from the ground, must be from 380 to 2,110 mm. (Implicitly revoked, 2008, chapter 14, s. 85)

O.C. 867-87, s. 12.

13. The vehicle must be equipped with 2 amber turn-signal lights, one on each side of the vertical line at the same height and at a minimum horizontal distance of 400 mm apart. The height of the lights, from the ground, must be from 380 to 2,110 mm. (Implicitly revoked, 2008, chapter 14, s. 85)

O.C. 867-87, s. 13.

14. The vehicle must be equipped on each side with a red reflector as far to the rear as practicable and with an amber reflex reflector as far forward as practicable. The height of the reflectors, from the ground, must be from 380 to 1,530 mm. (Implicitly revoked, 2008, chapter 14, s. 85)

O.C. 867-87, s. 14.

15. The lights prescribed for the rear of the vehicle must be of an independent or integrated type. (Implicitly revoked, 2008, chapter 14, s. 85)

O.C. 867-87, s. 15.

DIVISION III BRAKES AND MUFFLERS (Implicitly revoked, 2008, chapter 14, s. 85)

O.C. 867-87, Div. III.

16. The vehicle must be equipped with a brake system acting on each wheel and with a parking brake. (Implicitly revoked, 2008, chapter 14, s. 85)

O.C. 867-87, s. 16.

17. The vehicle must be equipped with a muffler and an exhaust system in good operating condition and the exhaust pipe shall be placed at the rear of the vehicle. (Implicitly revoked, 2008, chapter 14, s. 85)

O.C. 867-87, s. 17.

DIVISION IV HORNS, MUDGUARDS, WARNING SIGNS, REAR-VIEW MIRRORS, ODOMETERS AND SEAT BELTS (Implicitly revoked, 2008, chapter 14, s. 85)

O.C. 867-87, Div. IV.

18. The vehicle must be equipped:

(1)  with a horn in good operating condition;

(2)  with a mudguard having the same width as each tread tire;

(3)  with a warning sign that complies with the 1967 CSA-D198 standard;

(4)  with a flat rear-view mirror having a reflecting surface of not less than 81 cm2, adjustable and mounted on a fixed support;

(5)  with an odometer and a speedometer in good operating condition and gauged in kilometres per hour. (Implicitly revoked, 2008, chapter 14, s. 85)

O.C. 867-87, s. 18.

19. The vehicle must be equipped with an abdominal safety belt of the type approved. Moreover, if the vehicle has been so designed that the driver may enter it with his wheelchair, a fixed attachment for the wheelchair must be installed for every direction. (Implicitly revoked, 2008, chapter 14, s. 85)

O.C. 867-87, s. 19.

DIVISION V STARTER AND MINIMUM AND MAXIMUM SPEED (Implicitly revoked, 2008, chapter 14, s. 85)

O.C. 867-87, Div. V.

20. The vehicle must be equipped with an ignition switch and an electric starter. (Implicitly revoked, 2008, chapter 14, s. 85)

O.C. 867-87, s. 20.

21. The vehicle must be able to reach a speed of 25 km/h and must not reach a speed exceeding 50 km/h. (Implicitly revoked, 2008, chapter 14, s. 85)

O.C. 867-87, s. 21.

CHAPTER IV TRANSITIONAL AND FINAL

22. This Regulation replaces the Regulation respecting emergency vehicles (O.C. 1994-82, 82-09-02).

O.C. 867-87, s. 22.

23. (Omitted).

O.C. 867-87, s. 23.

SCHEDULE I

(s. 2)

EMERGENCY VEHICLE

CERTIFICATE

	
	Emergency vehicle
	certificate
Name of Owner		Model of vehicle	Model	Year
Name of agency		Registration No.		
No	Street	Apt.		The Régie hereby recognizes the vehicle identified above as an emergency vehicle

The Régie		
Municipality	Postal Code				
				

O.C. 867-87, Sch. I.

SCHEDULE II

(s. 6)

CERTIFICATE

USE OF AMBER LIGHTS

	
	Certificate
	Use of amber lights
Name of Owner		Model of vehicle	Model	Year
Name of agency		Registration No.		
No	Street	Apt.		The Régie authorizes the vehicle identified above to use amber lights.

The Régie		
Municipality	Postal Code				
				

O.C. 867-87, Sch. II.

REFERENCES

O.C. 867-87, 1987 G.O. 2, 1773

S.Q. 1988, c. 46, s. 25

O.C. 1701-89, 1989 G.O. 2, 4123

S.Q. 1990, c. 19, s. 11

S.Q. 1994, c. 17, s. 77