Walt

Vehicle Striping

So, what's the deal on putting stripes on Fire Department and Fire Police vehicles??? Why did PSP suddenly put stripes on their back bumpers?

The deal is someone thought it was a good idea. Too many times we get slammed into while parked, and those goofy money-grubbing attorneys don't want to hear how it's actually the drunk's fault for slamming into a parked fire truck, so it must be OUR faults.

Well, that said, anything we can do to make us safer is cool by me. JEMS ran an article about this, and it's been in various fire trade mags. Fire Trucks started this many moons ago - check out Plano Texas FD. The Europeans have been putting some real gaudy designs on their vehicles for years in the name of safety.

Striping needs to be done in a certain pattern - the stripes have to be sloped downwards from the center out at 45 degree angles. Two contrasting colors are typically used, and although both can be reflective, situations have occurred where both will actually reflect silver and eliminate the direction of the stripes.

To avoid this problem, lots of applications use a dark painted background with a light reflective stripe. This can never wash out!

We were provided information that NFPA has proposed red and yellow striping for the rear of apparatus. Both colors are to be reflective. To avoid a potential wash-out, use a low-grade reflective red, and a high-vis yellow.

Got a photo of a Traffic Unit with the stripes? Send it to us! Check out the Photo Link - Springettsbury Township's Traffic Unit is striped and their Utility will follow suit soon.