The push to drop the speed limit when driving by a crash scene or an emergency reignited in Tasmania last year when Victoria introduced its own laws.

The Tasmanian Volunteer Fire Brigades Association urged the state government to create similar laws, but reduce the limit further to 25km/h, mirroring legislation introduced in South Australia in 2014.

On Thursday, the state’s two major political parties committed to “safer” speed limits, but shadowed Victorian legislation, as opposed to South Australia.

Both the Liberals and Labor promised to amend Tasmania’s road laws to make it an offence to travel past an emergency services vehicle parked on a roadside with lights flashing or a siren sounding, faster than 40km/h.

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TVFBA state president Robert Atkinson said it had “always been a concern” for firefighters.

“When you are at a fire on the side of the road, you are concentrating on the job at hand,” he said.

“You’re in and around the truck, you are getting equipment out. You just haven’t got time to look at what is going past you. And you need to put the truck in the best place for that incident. Whether that is halfway across the road, you have to do it.”

Nearly 80 per cent of readers polled by The Examiner last year agreed the speed limit should be reduced when passing emergency vehicles.