The Sirens are Driving me Nuts!

[RJR123]

I just got back from four days in NYC and in the span of less than two days in Toronto I have been subjected to what seems like the constant wail of sirens. Yet in NYC, a much, much larger city I don't recall hearing the sirens nearly as much! It's really irritating, and I can't imagine that we have that much more incidents that require sirens to be blaring. Are our fire and police officers siren-happy??

 

[nicetommy]

Im guessing the canyon effect in NYC buffers the sound of the sirens, which is why you didn't notice them. Do you live next to a fire hall here in Toronto??

 

[dt_toronto_geek]

I spend a lot of time in the summer evenings on my 24th floor balcony and I've also noticed sirens have become louder but I'm not sure when it happened, perhaps last year? I also don't know if it's fire trucks, ambulances, police sirens or all of them as I rarely take visual notice. I do know if a friend is sitting with me conversation has to stop until the vehicle passes by my building as it is absolutely impossible to talk or shout over them. When walking, if a fire truck is advancing an intersection the siren is loud but when they pull on that second "intersection clearing horn" I nearly jump out of my skin if I'm nearby!
None of the above is a complaint, I'm sure there is a reason for raising the levels that high, only my observations.

 

[gboykovekin]

You would think though for a fairly pedestrian-heavy urban area compared to the surrounding suburbs, emergency and police services would modulate the sound levels so as to lessen hearing loss and noise pollution.

 

[Prometheus The Supremo]

our sirens suck. you can't tell if they're coming or going. pick a pitch and stick with it.

 

[adma]

Yeah, Sirens drives me nuts, as does Urban Behavior and Garage and all those other jernts catering to the thong whale-tailers out there

 

[Urban Shocker]

Sirens are luring me to get wrecked at the RCYC club house this evening.

 

[fiendishlibrarian]

My girlfriend lives at St. Clair and Yonge, and the trucks that come out of the firehouse on Balmoral only let out a siren when they're approaching the intersections. The rest of the time they only have their siren lights going if traffic isn't too heavy. Same with police and ambulance, so maybe the hoity toity areas are kept quiet due to complaints, I'd reckon.

And when I'm in NYC, I honestly don't pick up too much on the sirens there. Toronto is just a really sleepy town in comparison, so sirens stand out more. In NYC, the only difference seems to be that they use that sharp honking noise more than here.

 

[BuildTO]

What I've noticed is that the odd day it's really bad. During the Outdoor Art Exhibition at city hall, there were sirens constantly and I could hear a lot of people remarking on it.

If it's true that it's worse here than in NYC, I'll bet it's a result of all the crummy drivers we have here. It amazes me to watch what some morons will do instead of pulling over to let an emergency vehicle pass.

 

[scarberiankhatru]

My girlfriend lives at St. Clair and Yonge, and the trucks that come out of the firehouse on Balmoral only let out a siren when they're approaching the intersections. The rest of the time they only have their siren lights going if traffic isn't too heavy. Same with police and ambulance, so maybe the hoity toity areas are kept quiet due to complaints, I'd reckon.

They (police, fire, and ambulance) do that near me, too...I definitely have not noticed sirens for the sake of sirens when they're not necessary to get around. Downtown's full of crazy taxis and cyclists and the like - perhaps they (and frequent intersections) are grounds for more continuous sirens.

edit - although I do wonder if they let the sirens linger in rougher parts of town.

 

[Tuscani01]

I have noticed that the sirens in Vaughan emit a lower sound than those used by Toronto fire trucks. It doesn't annoy you, but it can still be heard before you get close to it.

 

[Hydrogen]

I wonder if its a city thing. In Ottawa, sirens are always kept on - even at three in the morning.

 

[MajorComplainer]

I just got back from four days in NYC and in the span of less than two days in Toronto I have been subjected to what seems like the constant wail of sirens. Yet in NYC, a much, much larger city I don't recall hearing the sirens nearly as much! It's really irritating, and I can't imagine that we have that much more incidents that require sirens to be blaring. Are our fire and police officers siren-happy??

Cause many of those jerks abuse the system. When there's no emerency, they don't want to stuck in traffic like EVERYONE ELSE, so they just use their "right" to turn on the woop woop and cut the line.