This is a long post, but well written and thoughtworthy, from someone who works for our company. Makes sense to me, what do you think?
A National Road Safety Initiative to consider.
Written by D----- A---
Something has been bugging me for sometime now and I wonder why nobody has ever considered it to maybe reduce the Australian Road Toll. I am a 41 year old simple father of two children with a lovely wife who has held a driver license for 23 years and average 70,000kms a year on Australian roads. I am a Motor Mechanic by trade and have been the owner of many motor cars and motorcycles over the years which may have highlighted the initiative in my mind considering how far we have come in the motoring industry even over the time of my driving history. Everyday on my roads I wonder sometimes just what some people are thinking when I see them driving early morning, late afternoon, in low light conditions and heavy fog without their headlights on. Bear with me and please take the time to think back and ask yourself have you ever had a close call or what if?
Everyday all around Australia there are accidents involving all road users, pedestrians, cyclists, motorcyclists, cars, buses and trucks that can and do result in financial loss, injury and loss of life and I wonder how many of these instances could have a different outcome if it was mandatory for all road users to drive or operate their vehicles with their headlights on every time the key is turned on. I wonder how many times the police have heard “I didn’t see him, her or them” and I wonder how many accidents that involve families like mine that have not survived a trip down an Australian road and have come to a horrific end on a perfectly straight road, I wonder what if they had their headlights on and the oncoming vehicle had it’s headlights on would they have seen one another before having the head on. Take note of just how hard it is to see some cars, bikes etc on the road these days due to their colour and how the blend in to the surroundings, then have you ever had to ask yourself as you peer around the tail of the vehicle your about to overtake “ is it clear up ahead” “is that car coming or going” or yeah I have got plenty of room to overtake only to find that the vehicle is on top of you ever so quickly and you were worried although you wouldn’t admit it to your family. Every night I see the aftermath of a horrific tragedy on the news and wonder if there could have been a different outcome.
I own a Harley Davidson motorcycle that as soon as the ignition is switched on the headlight is also illuminated, it doesn’t even have a headlight switch and for the sole reason of safety to make motorcycles more visible to other road users and to help protect the rider, well why are not car drivers, bus drivers, truck drivers and cyclists not as important to implement the same measures adopted to help protect the operator and other road users to make them as visible as possible whilst driving? Just tonight I saw four vehicles on my way home in the pitch black with one headlight working on the highway and one black Commodore station wagon with absolutely no lights on at all, this is a common occurrence on the roads that I travel. Wouldn’t it be good if the headlights were on all the time during the day so you could be warned that you have one out and not find out about it when you need them the most? I wonder how many times have you seen a vehicle drive down the street without their headlights on due to streets lights and then finally switch them on after they realise just how dark it is when they run out of street lights? I wonder how many times drink drivers have hopped behind the wheel and driven off without their headlights on and have run into an innocent party due to lack of visibility for both parties?
I have worked in the mining industry and noted that any vehicle that drives into a mine site MUST have their headlights on all in the name of Mine Safety yet when we drive out the gate the headlights are off and you are in the rat race with other shift workers who have completed their 12 hr shift in a hurry to get home which has resulted in other road user fatalities. Take a drive between Mackay and Moranbah and take note of all the signs someone has put up on the sides of the road every time a motor vehicle has had an accident along that stretch of road, let me tell you there is well over a hundred signs and the words Fatality send a shiver up your spine. An ever increasing number of drivers on the road these days are turning on their headlights which you will notice especially on long weekends, maybe the travellers feel safer knowing that they are more visible in heavy traffic conditions, but what about just the drive to the shop or going to and from work don’t you think it can happen to you then or don’t you think about it at all. Having your headlights on is not only to protect you it may protect the elderly pedestrian or child that didn’t see your vehicle. If the government was really serious about road safety and agreed to make all vehicle manufactures implement an auto headlight system into all new vehicles coming into our country to meet an amended Australian Standard for the vehicle then the question is why hasn’t it been done a long time ago? The vehicle manufactures are only happy to implement auto wipers, voice activated radio controls, GPS, 6 airbags, reversing sensors, reversing cameras, abs braking, stability control and many more features that are too numerous to list yet we miss the thing that makes us visible to other road users and the thing that really could save you and your families lives from the person who says “I didn’t see him”. We need to start somewhere sometime soon and phase in these measures.
· All new vehicles must have an automatic headlight system that can’t be turned off whilst the vehicle is running.
· All used vehicles must have a simple modification completed as apart of roadworthiness before the vehicle can be purchased.
· All current road registered vehicles regardless of size must have the simple modification completed by a nominated time ( maybe when registration is due)
· All young people just starting out their driver training must be taught about the importance of being visible and how much of an impact it may have on their or other road users lives.
· Ban the use of parking lights only while driving on the road.
Just look at the expense that all the different states throw at Road Safety every year trying to minimise the road toll like speed cameras, more police, advertisements and driver education, why not provide a rebate to all vehicle owners to have this implemented as soon as possible. I wonder if it may help to take a bit of the strain off our hospitals and doctors with the flow on effect.
If these measures could be implemented quickly and Nation wide we would find the transition is quick and my guess very effective in not only making some difference to the road toll but also to the suffering and injury to those who were lucky to survive their ordeal?
Now I know people are going to say that “their vehicles headlights turn on and off with the ignition” just like my Toyota Camry right now but the fact is it only works if the headlight switch is on and that is the weak link and there will always be those who forget or just won’t turn them on. I have purchased a second hand 2006 Toyota Hilux Dual Cab two years ago and discovered that the previous owner had the auto headlight modification installed which means that regardless of the headlight switch the headlights are on about 5 seconds after the vehicle ignition is turned on which I for one am only to happy to have. It is a fool proof system where only the low beam is activated when the vehicle is started and high beam can not be operated until the headlight switch is turned on manually meaning you can’t make the mistake of having your high beam on annoying oncoming traffic. Another vehicle I have is my work supplied 2008 Nissan Navara Dual Cab ute that the manufacturers have gone to the trouble to install a buzzer if the headlights are left on when the ignition is turned off, well why do they bother putting in a buzzer and not just a simple command to turn them off or even better a signal to turn them on when the ignition is in the on position and off when the key is off! It does have one very handy feature in that it has a dial with three positions for lowering the low beam when carrying a heavy load for combating lights shining in oncoming traffics eyes.
When you are out next take a look ahead and note how visible a vehicle is with his lights on and then the difference when one hasn’t and try and tell me how that couldn’t possibly help visibility to other road users. I see people driving with their parkers on, now these are next to useless as you can’t see them until they are nearly upon you. Parking lights are exactly as described Parking lights designed for the side of the road in a parking bay just as the heavy transport do regularly not as an on the road visibility fix and should be banned from use on the road as have fog lights now in Queensland when used when it is not foggy (this to me is wrong as least the vehicle is visible to oncoming traffic. Another point to consider if you use your parkers are that if the sun is behind you the parkers are useless but if you headlights are on they still can be visible. My eye sight is starting to fade and when I cover my right eye I can’t read road signs clearly yet I have just had them tested and was told I am fine and I don’t need glasses and am legally fit to drive in that condition, how bad are others eyes who don’t or won’t get them checked and are driving on the roads I travel?
Let’s think about these seriously for a moment and ask ourselves why?
· Why do trains have headlights on all the time?
· Why do planes have headlights on all the time?
· Why do all police and emergency vehicles have flashing lights?
· Why do all road work crews have flashing lights?
· Why do workers wear high visibility clothing?
There is only one answer and it is TO INCREASE VISIBILTY TO OTHER PARTIES AND TO HELP PROTECT THE INDIVIDUAL!
Please tell me why we as road users can pass each other by time and again with two metres to spare at 100km an hr with no headlights on, that’s right 2 metres separation is all that’s between us as you pass by, 2 metres that determines life and death and only 2 metres room for error which is why I think visibility is critical. Critical because with an increasing population we have increasing road usage, critical because we allow foreigners or tourists to drive in our country who may not be as up to speed with our road rules and are used to driving for an example on the other side of the road and in vehicles with all controls opposite to what they are used to and critical to oncoming traffic for the users who breach the two metre invisible barrier that protects us and our families due to distractions from gadgets we commonly now have in our vehicles like phones and GPS’s.
I have had first hand experience of being inside a smashed up car holding the drivers head with his 83 year old mother beside him in the passenger seat whilst waiting for the emergency crews to arrive and know the feeling I had when the paramedics told me I had to wear rubber gloves and left me crouched on the back seat with a steering wheel and air bag beside me whilst they went to work, know the smell of urine and faeces, know the feeling while I held his head and they started to cut the roof off, know the feeling of wondering what my wife was thinking while she sat in our car with our two children for an hour and a half with emergency services all around her wondering where her husband is and know the feeling of attending his funeral straight after Christmas and the effect it had on me and his family even though I only knew him for an hour and a half. Don’t we owe it to our emergency services hero’s who deal with these types of tragedies everyday to try and give them maybe just small helping hand to stay more visible whilst on the road so that we all may just get home to our families safely.
Q. What are vehicle headlights for?
A. To increase visibility for the user whilst driving and to increase visibility of the vehicle for other road users.
Well then why do we turn them off when they just might save a life?
If we all want to be HERE FOR LIFE we need to start thinking of others as well as ourselves and increase visibility for all.
