Collector vehicles with lights

Parades sometimes feature antique or collector public safety vehicles like fire trucks and ambulances with working red or other colored emergency lights.

While it is OK to drive the vehicles in the parade or classic car show, technically it is illegal to drive them to the event.

“The lights on these vehicles are nonconforming to current legal standards for who can display blue lights and red lights and where they have to be actually on the vehicle,” said Bill Strusinski, representing the Minnesota Fire Chiefs and the Minnesota Street Rod associations. “These are not used for general transportation; they’re not being driven on the street everyday as personal drivers or for work.”

Sponsored by Rep. Deb Kiel (R-Crookston), HF922 would allow the vehicles to be driven on streets provided a proper collector or classic car license plate is displayed.

Approved April 11 by the House Transportation Policy and Finance Committee, the bill was sent to the House Public Safety and Crime Prevention Policy and Finance Committee. A companion, SF532, sponsored by Sen. Ray Vandeveer (R-Forest Lake), awaits action by the Senate Transportation Committee.

Kiel said an amendment would be proposed in the public safety committee that the emergency lights on the vehicles cannot be used when travelling to or from an event.