Headlights hurt, not help daytime driving
I know as I’m writing this that I will likely get a politically correct rebuttal from some safety cop, but here goes.
I’ve noticed this spring that approximately one in three cars driving around in the middle of the day with their headlights on. I also have seen for several hears now, the sign going south off the Long Bridge: “Lights on for safety.”
It’s one thing if your lights turn automatically in newer cars, if you’re driving at dusk, before dawn or on a dark, gloomy, overcast day. I will usually turn on my parking lights during these times as well. However, if you cannot see a moving car on a bright sunny spring day without its headlights on, then you do not belong behind the wheel in the first place. Or you need to remove the heavy tinting that many vehicles have now.
Perhaps the most serious case against the practice is what I’ve experienced several times. Twice, I’ve been sitting at the traffic light heading east on Pine St. when a high set pickup, turned to their right off of 5th, proceeded west on Pine. They not only had their headlights on, but their high beams, which as I glanced at them, glared in my eyes just as my lane of traffic began moving and for a moment I couldn’t tell.
Another time, I was heading north on Division in front of the high school, when a UPS truck was driving south. The sun glared on his windshield, nearly blinding me and making it worse, a car in front of him had its high beams on. Just recently, a newer Toyota sedan tailgated me driving down Division with its high beams on, glaring in my rear view mirror.
Bottom line, besides looking silly, headlights are to see and be seen during dark hours. They add nothing to visibility on a sunny day and are actually distracting to the point of being dangerous when they add glare to sunlight reflecting off bright surfaces, especially this time of year. Rethink this practice before it contributes to an accident instead of preventing one.
LAWRENCE FURY
Sandpoint
I know as I’m writing this that I will likely get a politically correct rebuttal from some safety cop, but here goes.
I’ve noticed this spring that approximately one in three cars driving around in the middle of the day with their headlights on. I also have seen for several hears now, the sign going south off the Long Bridge: “Lights on for safety.”
It’s one thing if your lights turn automatically in newer cars, if you’re driving at dusk, before dawn or on a dark, gloomy, overcast day. I will usually turn on my parking lights during these times as well. However, if you cannot see a moving car on a bright sunny spring day without its headlights on, then you do not belong behind the wheel in the first place. Or you need to remove the heavy tinting that many vehicles have now.
Perhaps the most serious case against the practice is what I’ve experienced several times. Twice, I’ve been sitting at the traffic light heading east on Pine St. when a high set pickup, turned to their right off of 5th, proceeded west on Pine. They not only had their headlights on, but their high beams, which as I glanced at them, glared in my eyes just as my lane of traffic began moving and for a moment I couldn’t tell.
Another time, I was heading north on Division in front of the high school, when a UPS truck was driving south. The sun glared on his windshield, nearly blinding me and making it worse, a car in front of him had its high beams on. Just recently, a newer Toyota sedan tailgated me driving down Division with its high beams on, glaring in my rear view mirror.
Bottom line, besides looking silly, headlights are to see and be seen during dark hours. They add nothing to visibility on a sunny day and are actually distracting to the point of being dangerous when they add glare to sunlight reflecting off bright surfaces, especially this time of year. Rethink this practice before it contributes to an accident instead of preventing one.
LAWRENCE FURY
Sandpoint