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Safety Officials Recommend Headlight Use During Winter
In a recent Oregon Department of Transportation news release, ODOT safety officials reminded people that use of low-beam headlights during the daytime in winter can help make your vehicle more visible to other drivers.
“When natural light is low, such as dawn or dusk or when it’s raining, cloudy, or snowing, your vehicle’s visibility will be improved significantly if you have your low-beam headlights on,” said Wayne Ivie of the Transportation Safety Division.
“Lights also can be valuable when there is little contrast between the color of a vehicle and that of its background, such as a lightly colored car against snow or a green car against foliage,” he said. Small cars are also harder to see at a distance.
Improved visibility can help prevent accidents, such as head-on collisions and sideswipes, as well as collisions with pedestrians and cyclists, Ivie said.
Tests conducted by the Society of Automotive Engineers determined that without lights, drivers can see oncoming cars when they are 2,074 feet away. With headlights on, the average visibility distance increased to 4,720 feet. For more information, visit ODOT’s Web site.
Winter 99, Vol 13, No 2
Article reprinted with permission of ODOT.
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