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Driving along a pitch black country A road last night I came across a car parked facing me on the left side of the road with its dipped headlights on. As it was dazzling me I gave it a healthy dose of main beams, (to see what the situation ahead was of course). This was ignored by the driver. As I passed the car I saw it was a marked police BMW traffic car.
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Having read the reactions here and elsewhere to the idea that someone could possibly use sidelights the officer concerned was using the correct method with his off/full headlight two position switch, or indeed auto lights....as much light as possible and to hell with everyone/everything else..:-)
Did you stop and give him a piece of your mind, or go past quickly enough that he wouldn't have been able to make a note of your reg...;)
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ON: if he'd been driving then he'd have had his dipped headlights on. What's the difference? You've no idea how long he'd been stopped for or why. If he'd had sidelights on you'd be complaining that he was insufficiently illuminated.....get a life.
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>> ON: if he'd been driving then he'd have had his dipped headlights on.
But he wouldn't (shouldn't?) be driving on the LEFT towards O.N.!
As I am led to believe, we in the UK drive on the left, with oncoming traffic on our RIGHT.
Well, except milk-floats of course......
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Telling people to 'get a life' helps no end.
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>> Telling people to 'get a life' helps no end.
>>
Especially when you haven't bothered to read the post correctly....
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I did bother to read the post. We have no idea whatsoever why the police car was there. Any number of events may have caused him/her to stop. I still regard it as trivial. In fact, my considered response, having read the posts so far and anticipating future posts, is, in an apathetic voice: 'Whatever.'
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Anyway when did you last see a milk float?, just woken from some strange happening like Adam Adamant...;)
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Obviously Woodster doesn't realise that RHD cars dipped headlights project a beam of light along the pavement.
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I wonder how a "healthy dose of main beams" helped the situation? I think a harry potter battle of wand beams is science fiction you know ON.
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If the dipped headlights of a car parked on the "wrong" side of the road cause a problem, how do you cope with the lights of cars approaching you from around bends, side turnings, etc?
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On a pitch black straight bit of road it was like having full beams continuously pointed at you. Dipped beams are asymmetric and project a beam to the left, which is no problem if the car is to your right.
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But if it's just come round a bend or a turning from the left, it will be on the left, exactly like the parked car situation.
Either way, I don't see how dipped beams can be just like full beams. Dipped means dipped, not just angled to the left.
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>> But if it's just come round a bend or a turning from the left, it
>> will be on the left, exactly like the parked car situation.
>> Either way, I don't see how dipped beams can be just like full beams. Dipped
>> means dipped, not just angled to the left.
>>
A turning or moving car only gives a brief flash of light, exactly unlike a parked car on an unlit straight road. Have You ever driven on an unlit road at night and seen where dipped headlights concentrate their light?
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Yes, all the roads around us are unlit. Dipped beams point downwards. I've never found there to be a problem from either moving or parked cars, unless their lights are not adjusted correctly, which is another question of course.
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>> I don't see how dipped beams can be just like full beams
>> As I passed I saw it was a marked police BMW traffic car
Which almost certainly had HID lights - if you're in the glare of those it can seem like main beam.
I sympathise with ON, he was driving along a dark road with a dazzling light presented almost directly in his field of vision. As our eyes age they are less able to differentiate between areas of great contrast, it must have been quite unpleasant.
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>> I sympathise with ON, he was driving along a dark road with a dazzling light
>> presented almost directly in his field of vision. As our eyes age they are less
>> able to differentiate between areas of great contrast, it must have been quite unpleasant.
>>
And gets worse with age. I know.
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>>>>As our eyes age they are less able to differentiate between areas of great contrast, it must have been quite unpleasant.
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>>And gets worse with age. I know.
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A Moorfields man told me that some of the glare can also be because of vey minor cataracts that many older folk have.
I had problems with excessive glare when using my new replacement varifocals.
After much investigation and eye retests the only reason seems to be that my amcient old specs have a small residual permant yellowish tint from their start in life as "transitions" type lenses.
So possibly the yellow night driving glasses might reduce glare but what other vision do they loose?
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" I don't see how dipped beams can be just like full beams. "
I'm afraid cliff Pope your wrong !
When inconsiderate ignorant drivers park on the side of oncoming traffic with their lights on dipped beam they will indeed dazzle the oncoming driver ! that is because the headlight pattern rises to the left , normally to illuminate the n/s hedge ! so hence it will dazzle the oncoming driver.
Its one of my pet hates when there are cars stopped out side takeaways and chip shops etc facing the wrong way with H/lamps on just while they nip in to collect their carp !
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>> that is because the headlight
>> pattern rises to the left , normally to illuminate the n/s hedge ! so hence
>> it will dazzle the oncoming driver.
>
>>
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I'm sorry, I didn't know they did that. It must be a modern feature. All my cars have a flat cut-off. I must say I have never observed the left-hand lift in other cars round here - perhaps it hasn't reached west Wales yet.
I'm surprised it is allowed - as has been noted here, there are lots of reasonable circumstances where another road user might be in the position normally taken by the hedge.
So these lights are designed to blind pedestrians correctly walking facing oncoming traffic?
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>> So these lights are designed to blind pedestrians correctly walking facing oncoming traffic?
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Better to be blinded than not seen as many pedestrians wear black.
Last edited by: Old Navy on Tue 6 Sep 11 at 09:42
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>> >>
>>
>> Better to be blinded than not seen
>>
I refer the honorable member to his original post :)
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>> >> >>
>> >>
>> >> Better to be blinded than not seen
>> >>
>>
>>
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>> I refer the honorable member to his original post :)
>>
I was not a pedestrian or wearing black. I also had my lights on. :-P
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Good to see a few people have seen the light! :-)
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>>>when did you last see a milk float?
About two hours ago going down A361 Bath Road Devizes.
Planks Dairies still going strong.
They have small fleet of electric floats.
Devizes also noted for Horse Drawn Brewers dray deliveries aroung the town for Wadworths Brewery.. Horses currentlly on Hols at Farm near to town (annual event always in the news with pics of Gert Great BIG Shires dashing about the fields enjoying not having heavy dray loaded with 6X behind them :-))
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Driving into my local village I was blinded by an oncoming vehicle (on the correct side of the road). After the initial polite flash of full beams went unnoticed I decided an extended flash was required. Having been ignored for a second time, I naturally gave in to the testosterone and put the full beams on permanently. (Childish I know but I did need to try to see past him...) He responded by briefly using his flashing blue lights. Ok fair enough, that trumps my full beams.
He passed by me a few seconds later driving at normal speed. I don't bear him any ill will. I dare say he had a reason for his full beams and it didn't do any harm in the end. I guess if he was on my side of the road I might have felt and reacted differently but on the whole nothing to get too upset about. They have a job to do and I'm generally happy to let them do it. If they were looking for my daughter in the hedgerows I'd want all the photons they could muster.
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In the past, half a lifetime away, I did a bit of road rallying and my daily drive had a set of Cibie rally lights on the front. I may have used them to make a point to other road users on occasion.
Now, half a lifetime further on, I ask myself in what way is having two dazzled drivers better than one dazzled driver ?
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>> Planks Dairies still going strong.
>> Devizes also noted for Horse Drawn Brewers dray deliveries aroung the town for Wadworths Brewery..
Lovely, and long may they continue.
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>> Anyway when did you last see a milk float?
Today - we live very close to 'Merseyside's largest independent dairy' so Badwolf Towers is frequently passed by milkfloats of varying vintage.
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>>>> Anyway when did you last see a milk float?
>>
Our milk is still delivered by a man on a milk float from the depot in Surbiton of good life fame.
Often used to see our previous milkman leaning on the steering wheel willing his float to go faster on the long trip back to the depot.
This type
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Dairy_Crest_Ex_Unigate_Wales_And_Edwards_Rangemaster_Milk_Float.jpg
Ps there are a wide variety on Google images
Last edited by: henry k on Sat 3 Sep 11 at 22:46
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Lovely Henry. I helped out on one of those. Happy days as a boy. Bit enlightening some of the women in the council flats though!!
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Inconsiderate use of lights by the police driver, on the face of it. Same as about 75% of the population then. I would expect no better, so wouldn't be disappointed. I am a supporter of the police, but they are certainly representative of the community they serve when it comes to thoughtful driving.
Last edited by: Manatee on Sat 3 Sep 11 at 18:48
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Just say the roles were reversed.
The copper - particularly if he was traffic - would give ON a long and condescending lecture about the beam dipping into the eyes of an oncoming driver.
An if ON was a lone female driver and fit, the lecture would be even longer and even more condescending.
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Why the police car was not having blue lights on? [or it was and I missed it in the post?]
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>> Why the police car was not having blue lights on? [or it was and I
>> missed it in the post?]
>>
>>
No blue lights or signs of any problem, (that I could see as I passed). He was stopped in a remote area with no habitation or buildings around.
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>> No blue lights or signs of any problem, (that I could see as I passed).
>> He was stopped in a remote area with no habitation or buildings around.
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Ah ha!
That is the final clue in this case.....
I conclude, The officer was caught short, and left his lights on so he wouldn't be seen!
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>> Ah ha!
>> That is the final clue in this case.....
>> I conclude, The officer was caught short, and left his lights on so he wouldn't
>> be seen!
>>
A possible reason, but why stop on the wrong side of the road? There was equal cover for a relief stop on both sides.
Ah, maybe the driver/copilot was female and was keeping the car between them.
Nah, a modest copper, unlikely. :-)
Last edited by: Old Navy on Sun 4 Sep 11 at 15:14
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Don't forget that if you are driving uphill towards a car parked with dipped headlights you will possibly get dazzled.
I'm mindfull of this in the same situation and knock the lights down to sidelights. Similarly temporary traffic lights, no street lighting and wet weather if I'm at the front of the queue.
All comes with experience.
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Police drivers ARGHHHH! - -
