Car refuses to give way to ambulance along CTE, only switches lane after 1 minute

A car was recently seen refusing to give way to an ambulance even as its lights were flashing.

The incident was captured on an adjacent car's dashcam and shared on Facebook group SGRV Admin.

The car, identified as a Mitsubishi Attrage, was seen travelling along the Central Expressway (CTE) on Sep. 18, 2026, driving on the rightmost lane.

An ambulance was following the car closely behind with its lights flashing and its sirens switched off.

However, the car only switched to the other lane and gave way after more than a minute.

What's wrong?

Under the Highway Code, the rightmost lane (often referred to as Lane 1) is designed for motorists to overtake other vehicles. Drivers are meant to change back to an adjacent lane after the overtaking.

Emergency vehicles, such as ambulances or police vehicles, also use Lane 1 to bypass traffic, and therefore have the right of way.

Though some netizens remarked that the car was not in the wrong as the ambulance's sirens were not switched on, the Highway Code states that a vehicle is obligated to give way to an emergency vehicle if the lights are flashing.

Failing to give way to emergency vehicles is an offence under the Road Traffic Act.

Drivers caught doing so could be fined up to S$150 for light vehicles and S$200 for heavy vehicles, and receive four demerit points.