In Luxembourg, firefighters are still not authorised to regulate road traffic
Planet Volumes
On 9 February 2025, the Minister of the Interior, Léon Gloden, submitted an official response to a parliamentary enquiry by the MP Marc Goergen. The question concerned the powers of the Corps grand-ducal d'incendie et de secours (CGDIS, Luxembourg Fire and Rescue Service) in traffic management.
Under Section 115 of the Roads Code, only two agencies have the authority to regulate traffic:
- Police (Police grand-ducale) - has general competence in the field of road traffic and its control.
- Customs (Administration des douanes et accises) - can stop vehicles as part of their tasks, such as controlling the transport of goods, vehicle documents and compliance with regulations on the use of toll roads.
Other agencies, including municipal staff and CGDIS, are not authorised to give binding directions to drivers or pedestrians.
Although firefighters are not officially authorised to regulate traffic, in practice they sometimes have to intervene. This applies to emergency situations such as traffic accidents. In such cases, CGDIS can:
- Fence off the scene to prevent further accidents.
- Temporarily direct the flow of traffic to ensure the safety of the rescuers themselves and others involved in the incident.
However, such actions do not constitute traffic control in the legal sense because firefighters cannot give drivers mandatory directions.
The 2018 law governing CGDIS does not include traffic control. The authorities believe that granting firefighters such powers would require legislative changes. For now, traffic control remains the exclusive prerogative of the police and customs.
The document mentions that the issue of empowering municipal services has been discussed previously but has not yet resulted in changes. There is no information whether a similar initiative is planned for CGDIS. However, the current situation leaves open the question of how effectively first responders can be coordinated at the scene of incidents.
