Closed petition: Require emergency service vehicles to use two-tone “nee nah” sirens.

Closed on 23 October 2025

We feel there has been an increased use of American style “wailing” sirens on our emergency service vehicles. We think this is a mistake, and that these are less safe. We believe they also represent a loss of a small but important bit of cultural capital.

A wailing siren's constantly changing pitch can disguise Doppler effects and interaural timing cues, which can make it difficult to discern the direction and distance.

We think a two-tone siren provides more predictable and consistent auditory cues that the brain can use for localisation.

Also, we want our emergency personnel to behave - and be treated like - British bobbies, not American cops. We view the siren an important subconscious nudge as to who we are and how we should behave.