Florida Statutes 316.2397 – Certain lights prohibited; exceptions
Current as of: 2024 | Check for updates
|
Other versions
(1) A person may not drive or move or cause to be moved any vehicle or equipment upon any highway within this state with any lamp or device thereon showing or displaying a red, red and white, or blue light visible from directly in front thereof except for certain vehicles provided in this section.
(2) It is expressly prohibited for any vehicle or equipment to show or display blue lights, except the following:
For details, see Fla. Stat. § 775.082(4)(a)
(a) Police vehicles;
Attorney's Note
Under the Florida Statutes, punishments for crimes depend on the classification. In the case of this section:| Class | Prison | Fine |
|---|---|---|
| misdemeanor of the first degree | up to 1 year | up to $1,000 |
Terms Used In Florida Statutes 316.2397
- Person: means any individual, firm, company, agency, organization, partnership, corporation, association, trust, or other business entity of any kind whatsoever. See Florida Statutes 316.193
- school: includes all preelementary, elementary, secondary, and postsecondary schools. See Florida Statutes 316.003
- writing: includes handwriting, printing, typewriting, and all other methods and means of forming letters and characters upon paper, stone, wood, or other materials. See Florida Statutes 1.01
(b) Government-owned fire department vehicles, except vehicles of the fire patrol or volunteer fire departments, with a gross vehicle weight rating of more than 24,000 pounds if authorized in writing by the fire chief of the government agency and if shown or displayed only on the rear of such vehicles; and
(c) Vehicles owned, operated, or leased by the Department of Corrections or any county correctional agency when responding to emergencies.
(3)(a) Vehicles of the fire department and fire patrol, including vehicles of volunteer firefighters as permitted under s. 316.2398, may show or display red or red and white lights. However, blue lights may be shown or displayed on fire department vehicles in accordance with paragraph (2)(b).
(b) Vehicles of medical staff physicians or technicians of medical facilities licensed by the state or of volunteer ambulance services as authorized under s. 316.2398, ambulances as authorized under this chapter, and buses and taxicabs as authorized under s. 316.2399 may show or display red lights.
(c) Authorized emergency vehicles may operate emergency lights and sirens in an emergency.
(d) Organ transport vehicles may show or display red lights.
(e) Wreckers, mosquito control fog and spray vehicles, and emergency vehicles of governmental departments or public service corporations may show or display amber lights when in actual operation or when a hazard exists provided they are not used going to and from the scene of operation or hazard without specific authorization of a law enforcement officer or law enforcement agency.
(f) Wreckers must use amber rotating or flashing lights while performing recoveries and loading on the roadside day or night, and may use such lights while towing a vehicle on wheel lifts, slings, or under reach if the operator of the wrecker deems such lights necessary. A flatbed, car carrier, or rollback may not use amber rotating or flashing lights when hauling a vehicle on the bed unless it creates a hazard to other motorists because of protruding objects. Further, escort vehicles may show or display amber lights when in the actual process of escorting overdimensioned equipment, material, or buildings as authorized by law.
(g) Vehicles owned or leased by private security agencies may show or display green and amber lights, with either color being no greater than 50 percent of the lights displayed, while the security personnel are engaged in security duties on private or public property.
(4) Road or street maintenance equipment, road or street maintenance vehicles, road service vehicles, refuse collection vehicles, petroleum tankers, and mail carrier vehicles may show or display amber lights when in operation or a hazard exists. A commercial motor vehicle or trailer designed to transport unprocessed logs or pulpwood may show or display an amber light affixed to the rearmost point of the vehicle or trailer.
(5) Road maintenance and construction equipment and vehicles may display flashing white lights or flashing white strobe lights when in operation and where a hazard exists. Construction equipment in a work zone on roadways with a posted speed limit of 55 miles per hour or higher may show or display a combination of flashing green, amber, and red lights in conjunction with periods when workers are present. Additionally, school buses and vehicles that are used to transport farm workers may display flashing white strobe lights.
(6) All lighting equipment heretofore referred to shall meet all requirements as set forth in s. 316.241.
(7) Flashing lights are prohibited on vehicles except:
(a) As a means of indicating a right or left turn, to change lanes, or to indicate that the vehicle is lawfully stopped or disabled upon the highway;
(b) When a motorist intermittently flashes his or her vehicle’s headlamps at an oncoming vehicle notwithstanding the motorist’s intent for doing so;
(c) During periods of extremely low visibility on roadways with a posted speed limit of 55 miles per hour or higher; and
(8) Subsections (1) and (7) do not apply to police, fire, or authorized emergency vehicles while in the performance of their necessary duties.
(9) Flashing red lights may be used by emergency response vehicles of the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, the Department of Environmental Protection, and the Department of Health when responding to an emergency in the line of duty.
(10)(a) A person who violates subsection (1) and in so doing effects or attempts to effect a stop of another vehicle commits a misdemeanor of the first degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.
(b) Except as provided in paragraph (a), a violation of this section is a noncriminal traffic infraction, punishable as a nonmoving violation as provided in chapter 318.