I'd bet that the majority of emergency vehicle hits are at night and due to excessively bright whiz-bang lighting. How anyone can expect someone to stare into a tig torch yet not suffer night blindness is inconceivable to me, but not to the policy wonks who mandate it.
Agreed on the parking in traffic lanes; I keep things trimmed back so you could get a three axle tractor off the road, but some idiots think that if they get a wheel off the pavement they'll be stuck or something.
A few years ago they changed how the lights on emergency vehicles flashed and worked. It turns out that drunks got mesmerized by the way the old lights flashed and drove straight into the parked car.