[apothegm]

They’ve made them louder and louder over the years. That’s because cars have improved soundproofing to keep out the road noise of the tires against asphalt. But that also means it’s harder for drivers to hear sirens. Plus sound systems have gotten louder (in some cases almost drowning out sirens for people outside the vehicle as well as inside!)

TLDR: arms race against audibility for drivers, with residents’ sanity as the casualties.

[tasoeur]

Your points make sense, I didn’t think about it that way. I wish there was a standard to override nearby vehicles with radio / audio to signal the presence of the emergency ones, but probably not happening anytime soon… Maybe another future win for self driving cars that can be more aware of those things and smooth out traffic