Re: [St] Headlamp low beam question

[Eoin Kirwan <eoinkirwan@xxxxxxxxxx>]

On Fri 19 Sep 2008, BrettWilson21@xxxxxxx wrote:
> In some places this is normal as it depends on the local laws.
>
> The argument for it went something like this -
>
> When a motorcycle is close enough for twin illuminated headlights to been
> seen as individual lights, car drivers think it is a car. Because the
> frontal area is small, the vehicle is misjudged as being further away than
> it actually is. The car driver thinks they have time to make a move that
> will cross the path of said vehicle. When this occurs its usually the
> perfect distance for the car to be hit by said bike.


Yes. I've heard that argument and it was used to justify the EU 
single-dip-beam requirement. It's also a crock!

I've had the 'perfect distance to be hit with no chance to take avoiding 
action' night-time accident. On a '93 Trophy 3, with a single headlight, on a 
lit road...


> The counter argument is that if thats the case, the motorcycle running one
> headlight only, from a twin light set up, can still easily be mistaken for
> a car. The perception being that one headlight is blown.

Honestly, with the mentality of many of the people driving here in Ireland 
(about one third of whom have not passed a driving test, many of those have 
never taken professional lessons, and until a few months ago driving like 
this, unsupervised, was legal!!!) basically it boils down to this. If they 
CAN hit you, sooner or later they WILL. Doesn't matter about rules of the 
road, rights of way, lighting, hi-vis clothing.. if they don't look, they 
won't see. If they do see, they don't care.

And of course the higher-than-EU-average biker casualty rate here is used to 
justify more regulation and hassle for motorcyclists, not the idiots in cars 
causing 99% of the carnage on the roads


Eoin

'04 ST955i

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