Police mistakenly stop cyclist for flashing rear light

FSR2007 wrote:

usedtobefaster wrote:

It was the case that LED lights were illegal as they didn't conform to the BS standard for bicycle lights which stipulated a filament type bulb had to be used.  Has the law been changed on this does anyone know?

 

 

i dotn think it has been changed, as i bought some lights recently and they said they didnt conform to the satndard as they were LED

I think all this proves is  that the manufacturers  don't  know what the standard actually is.

In any case, if you worry about such thinks just buy something  that conforms  to STVZO.

FSR2007 wrote:

usedtobefaster wrote:

It was the case that LED lights were illegal as they didn't conform to the BS standard for bicycle lights which stipulated a filament type bulb had to be used.  Has the law been changed on this does anyone know?

 

 

i dotn think it has been changed, as i bought some lights recently and they said they didnt conform to the satndard as they were LED

The requirement for a filament bulb was dropped (for bicycles) in the 1994 amendment to the Road Vehicle Lighting Regulations.  If your lights don't conform to the required standard it's because the makers haven't paid to have them certified.

I used to wonder what the alternative to a filament bulb was in the pre-LED decades.  I believe that requirement was brought in around the time of WWII to prevent the use of bike lights with spirit or petrol (!) flames as a light source.

I want to know how they managed to spot him in the first place...

P3t3 wrote:

Oh - and the theme is road user visibilty...? I don't want to wear hi-vis to walk to the pub thanks.  Focus on teaching drivers how to look properly and drive a bit slower instead of this victim blaming equal responsibility rubbish.  

Agree  & disagree; was driving down a country lane last week in the dark that had no pavements. Nothing ahead of me (or so I thought), no other vehicles about. I was doing 32-33mph (in a 30) and all of a sudden I saw a woman pushing a pram in the same direction that I was travelling. Absolutely everything that she was wearing and pushing was very dark coloured and nothing was reflecting my very bright headlights.

I didn't hit her as I was going steady, but it didn't half make me jump. I was driving diligently, slightly over the speed limit I admit, but not dicking with a phone or anything.

So if your route to the pub has pavements go dressed as the milk try man, if not, be sensible.

PaulBox wrote:

I want to know how they managed to spot him in the first place...

P3t3 wrote:

Oh - and the theme is road user visibilty...? I don't want to wear hi-vis to walk to the pub thanks.  Focus on teaching drivers how to look properly and drive a bit slower instead of this victim blaming equal responsibility rubbish.  

Agree  & disagree; was driving down a country lane last week in the dark that had no pavements. Nothing ahead of me (or so I thought), no other vehicles about. I was doing 32-33mph (in a 30) and all of a sudden I saw a woman pushing a pram in the same direction that I was travelling. Absolutely everything that she was wearing and pushing was very dark coloured and nothing was reflecting my very bright headlights.

I didn't hit her as I was going steady, but it didn't half make me jump. I was driving diligently, slightly over the speed limit I admit, but not dicking with a phone or anything.

So if your route to the pub has pavements go dressed as the milk try man, if not, be sensible.

This is by no means a new problem.  During WW2 the well known yachtsman Uffa Fox ran over and killed a soldier who was walking along a country road  in darkness.  He was prosecuted and acquitted as the squaddie was wearing his khaki uniform, which made him effectively invisible.

Even back in 1941 pedestrians were expected to take responsibility for their safety, it's no different today.

jstone1 wrote:

A side point but I seem to remember reading somewhere that it's hard to judge how far away a flashing light is (or the speed it's going). So, while flashing gets your attention, it might be that a bright constant light (or constant plus a flash like many lights can do), makes it easier for those behind to judge where you are.

https://www.reddit.com/r/cycling/comments/3nwkyt/ive_heard_that_flashing...

I'll put my hand up to this too.  I judge distance away and closing speed on the increasing size and brightness of the light at night.  Some flashing reds have patterns that are  quite distracting. Also some lights have got that bright  they are blinding.

jstone1 wrote:

A side point but I seem to remember reading somewhere that it's hard to judge how far away a flashing light is (or the speed it's going). So, while flashing gets your attention, it might be that a bright constant light (or constant plus a flash like many lights can do), makes it easier for those behind to judge where you are.

https://www.reddit.com/r/cycling/comments/3nwkyt/ive_heard_that_flashing...

this is why ships always run aground, it turns out that even though they are 25metres from the lighthouse, they think it is miles away because it is flashing.

Wingnut wrote:

I've always had my rear light on flash mode as I "think" it's more noticeable to cars behind me. I would however struggle to find space on my SPD's for reflectors. So I guess Front & Rear lights, another on flash mode at front, reflectors on mudguard and pannier bag. Altura night vision day glow orange and technically I'm still not legal. 

 

Driving in the dark, especially in traffic, I find flashing rear lights are much more difficult to spot than steady ones.  They also seem to make it much harder to judge the relative speed and distance to the bike.   I rarely ride at night, but when I do, I use both a flashing light and a steady light.