'Drive an ambulance before getting a licence': Uber driver's road-safety lesson goes viral

Despite repeated awareness campaigns and strict traffic regulations, many Indian motorists continue to ignore basic road etiquette, often refusing to give way to ambulances and other emergency vehicles. Traffic experts have long warned that these delays can mean the difference between life and death for patients being rushed to hospitals. 

The issue has come back into focus following a viral social media post that recounts an early morning Uber ride in Pune and a conversation that has struck a chord with thousands online. 

According to the post, the passenger was travelling through the city's relatively empty streets at around 4 a.m. when the Uber driver offered what he believed was a simple solution to India's traffic woes. 

What initially sounded like a casual opinion soon took on greater weight when the driver revealed that he had spent 11 years behind the wheel of an ambulance. 

Drawing from that experience, he suggested that every person applying for a driving licence should first spend a week driving an ambulance. 

Not merely riding in one, but driving it through traffic while responding to emergencies. 

The former ambulance driver described the challenges he encountered over more than a decade on the road — motorists refusing to move aside, vehicles blocking intersections, cars parked carelessly, and drivers trying to squeeze past ambulances to save a few seconds on their commute. 

He argued that many road users fail to understand the urgency of an ambulance journey because they have never experienced the pressure of transporting a critically ill patient. 

The most powerful moment in the conversation came when he summed up the problem in a single sentence. "When you drive your own car, traffic is inconvenience. When you drive an ambulance, traffic is life or death." 

The statement has resonated widely on social media, with users saying it captures the lack of empathy and road discipline that continues to plague Indian cities. 

Many online commenters agreed that while making people drive ambulances before receiving a licence may not be practical, the idea highlights an important lesson: understanding the consequences of poor driving behaviour could encourage greater respect for emergency vehicles and ultimately help save lives.