Red flag laws were laws in the United Kingdom and the United States enacted in the late 19th century, requiring drivers of early automobiles to take certain safety precautions, including waving a red flag in front of the vehicle as a warning.
Red flag law in the United Kingdom
In the United Kingdom, the law required self-propelled vehicles to be led by a pedestrian waving a red flag or carrying a lantern to warn bystanders of the vehicle's approach.
In particular the
Locomotives Act 1865, also known as ''Red Flag Act'', stated:
The Red Flag Act was repealed in 1896, by which time the
internal combustion engine
An internal combustion engine (ICE or IC engine) is a heat engine in which the combustion of a fuel occurs with an oxidizer (usually air) in a combustion chamber that is an integral part of the working fluid flow circuit. In an internal comb ...
was well into its infancy.
[Olyslager, 7 & 23]
Red flag law in the United States
In the United States,
Vermont
Vermont () is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, New York (state), New York to the west, and the Provinces and territories of Ca ...
passed a similar Red Flag Law in 1894, only to repeal it two years later.
This law stated that "
e owner or person in charge of a carriage, vehicle or engine propelled by steam, except road rollers" must have a "person of mature age
..at least one-eight of a mile in advance of" the vehicle, to warn those with livestock of its impending arrival. If at night, it also required the aforementioned person to carry a red light. The law did not apply to
rail vehicle
The term rolling stock in the rail transport industry refers to railway vehicles, including both powered and unpowered vehicles: for example, locomotives, freight and passenger cars (or coaches), and non-revenue cars. Passenger vehicles can be ...
s.
References
External links
*Bailey, T., and Kennedy, D. ''
The American Pageant.'' Lexington: D. C. Heath, 1994.
*Olyslager, P. and Sir J. Brabham. ''Illustrated Motor Cars of the World.'' New York: Grosset & Dunlap, 1967. {{ISBN, 978-0448025872
Traffic law
Law enforcement techniques