§ 818. Type of Warning Lamps Used on Emergency Vehicles and Special Hazard Vehicles.

Warning lamps on emergency vehicles and special hazard vehicles shall be of the following types:

(a) Required Red Warning Lamps on Authorized Emergency Vehicles. The steady burning red warning lamp required to be visible to the front of an authorized emergency vehicle by Vehicle Code Section 25252 shall be a Class A, B or C warning lamp. Motorcycles may instead be equipped with two Class D warning lamps in the front, one of which may flash.

(b) Permitted Additional Red Warning Lamps on Authorized Emergency Vehicles. The additional steady burning or flashing red warning lamp permitted by Vehicle Code Section 25252 shall be a Class A, B, C, or E warning lamp.

(c) Permitted Yellow Warning Lamps on Authorized Emergency Vehicles. The additional flashing yellow warning lamp permitted on authorized emergency vehicles by Vehicle Code Section 25259 shall be a Class B, C, or E warning lamp. Two yellow motorcycle turn signal lamps may be used as warning lamps on the rear of motorcycles.

(d) Permitted Blue Warning Lamps on Police Vehicles. The additional flashing or steady burning blue warning lamp permitted by Vehicle Code Section 25258(b) shall be Class B, C, or E.

(e) Required Yellow Warning Lamps on Tow Cars. The flashing yellow warning lamp required on tow cars by Vehicle Code Section 25253 shall be a Class B, C, or E warning lamp. The flashing yellow warning lamp permitted to be displayed to the rear of a tow car while towing a vehicle and moving at a speed slower than the normal flow of traffic may be a 360-degree revolving or gaseous discharge lamp. In such case, the front and side areas of the lens or transparent cover that extends back to 45 degrees to each side of the straight-to-the-rear axis of the lamp shall be covered with opaque material reaching to the top of the lighted area. A revolving lamp may instead be equipped with a device that turns each light source off during the forward three-fourths of its rotation.

(f) Permitted Yellow Warning Lamps on Special Hazard Vehicles. The flashing yellow warning lamps permitted on special hazard vehicles by Article 7 of Division 12 of the Vehicle Code beginning with Section 25252, shall be a Class B, C, or E warning lamp, depending on whether the lamp is permitted to be displayed only to the front and rear or to the front, sides, and rear.

(g) Warning Lamps for Undercover Cars. The required steady-burning forward-facing warning lamps on authorized emergency vehicles with special plates permitted by Vehicle Code Section 5001 shall be a class A, B, or C. This warning lamp may also be a fixed or handheld red spotlamp with a filament of at least 30 watts, and producing at least 3,000 candela in red at the brightest point in the beam. Such a lamp need not meet any of the other requirements of this article except for color. Additional steady-burning or flashing warning lamps shall be class A, B, C, or E. These warning lamps may be displayed through transparent or translucent material provided the light, of proper color, is plainly visible and understandable in bright sunlight and during darkness, under normal atmospheric conditions, to a distance of 800 feet from the vehicle. These lights shall not transfigure, disrupt or mask any other required lighting device.

HISTORY

1. Amendment of subsections (e) and (g) filed 11-25-2002; operative 12-25-2002 (Register 2002, No. 48).

Note

Note: Authority cited: Section 26103, Vehicle Code. Reference: Sections 24012 and 26103, Vehicle Code.