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Meanwhile traffic crashes and pedestrian deaths are up because people driving (even during the day) can't resist speeding and looking at their phones. Also mea
by stfp 6y ago
Meanwhile traffic crashes and pedestrian deaths are up because people driving (even during the day) can't resist speeding and looking at their phones.
Also meanwhile, cars are getting super bright headlights that actually make it harder to see at night in the city (signs and windows will reflect a lot more than people, you'll be blinded by oncoming cars...)
My point being, there is no safety tradeoff being evaluated - we're getting super bright, super white LEDs because of economics (white/cool LEDs are cheaper) and a general fascination/desire to get the brightest thing possible.
- DangerousPie 6y ago> Also meanwhile, cars are getting super bright headlights that actually make it harder to see at night in the city (signs and windows will reflect a lot more than people, you'll be blinded by oncoming cars...) Any sources for that? I always read that the only times bright (LED) lights blind oncoming traffic is when they are improperly installed aftermarket.
- evanlivingston 6y agoThis might be more of an issue in the U.S. where car illumination standards are different. At night, nearly every vehicle I come across produced > ~2018 has blinding headlights that require me to squint drastically.
- mtalantikite 6y agoI don't drive much since I'm in New York, but I certainly feel blinded by oncoming traffic whenever I'm in a car outside of the city. SUVs with bright LEDs in oncoming traffic make it super hard to see personally. I don't ever recall that as a problem when I was younger, but maybe it's my aging eyes and more SUVs on the road (I still think it's the LEDs though).
- bobbylarrybobby 6y agoInteresting. Walking around downtown Manhattan at night I'm frequently blinded by traffic.
- mtalantikite 6y agoYeah true, main streets in the city will do that to you too, for sure. I live in Brooklyn, so there's far less traffic around at night over here.
- lotsofpulp 6y agoI see lights at different heights for SUVs and pickup trucks than for cars, I don’t see how it matters how the light is installed when it’s eve level for people in cars. I can see the light’s blinding reflections in other cars’ rear view mirrors at night when a higher vehicle is behind them.
- monkeybutton 6y agoMy pet theory is it has to with the size/shape of modern cars. Having an older car, I'm sitting lower to the ground and am eye level with the headlights with what feels like every compact SUV or whatever is popular now.
- stfp 6y agoI'm in the US so as as others pointed out it might be more of an issue here (due to higher vehicles - SUVs/trucks - taking over). As a side note, the crazy lights are bad for pedestrians as well: they're so bright you sometimes have to look away from incoming traffic (esp. if there's a hill involved, tilting the vehicles) and they make it harder to estimate distances (all you see are the lights, which you can't look at, and not the vehicle they're attached to).
- syoc 6y agoI don't learning where to look is emphasized enough during driving education. You should not be looking directly at the other car or towards their side of the road when driving in the dark. Just resting your eyes on the right side of the road will make a huge difference. I was thought that you should turn on your high beams when the approaching car is two car lenghts in front of you. A lot of people do around here. Never a problem with when you don't look into the headlights and you can see more during what would otherwise be a dangerous timing.