Convincing Cyclists To Use Lights

Its not only the law that you have a white front light and a red rear light, but its a good idea. I can’t tell you the number of cyclists I pass who are almost completely invisible because they only have reflectors. You need lights, they are vital to your safety. There is no other way to put it, you shouldn’t get on a bike at night without lights.

The Dutch as always are ten steps ahead of us.

I really like the light fairy and her dress made of lights. This could be done here with minimal planning, and cost. Set up shop at any of the many spots cyclists frequent, shine a bright light on them send out your light drones, suck them in and give them free lights. I would have really liked the BPHC spent 40K on giving out free lights, and free helmets than put up those horrible ads.

(thanks John for the heads up)

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This Looks Interesting, Also USE A LIGHT!

Dear everyone, lights, use em. Especially not that its getting darker sooner. For reals, I can’t even see you and I am on the bike right behind you. This goes for late night joggers/pedestrians as well. You don’t have to get a light up backpack, but please, LIGHTS!

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Get Your Light On!

Even though the light is better, you still need a red back light, and a white front light. Not only is it the law, it will save your bacon. Today I ran across an amazing, comprehensive, one stop shop review for all things bike light related. Check it out here.

Here is a taste:

Choosing a light can be a difficult task though – there are countless options to choose from ranging from cheap $3 flashers to blindingly bright $200 powerhouses. The internet already has some good comparisons of bike headlights, but there’s a surprising lack of comprehensive taillight comparisons, so I decided to make one. For science.

In total, I reviewed 16 different taillights from 8 of the top light manufacturers. I chose which lights to review based on a survey I conducted on the parent site for this blog – Bicycles Stack Exchange, a Q&A site for everything about bicycles, and also asked on Reddit’s /r/bicycling. The incumbent in this race is the Planet Bike Blinky Superflash. Everyone has this light (myself included). Not only is it the light most people own, it’s also the most-loved – 20% of respondents said it was their favorite. In terms of what people wish they had or are considering buying, the Planet Bike Superflash Turbo, Portland Design Works’ Radbot 1000 and Danger Zone, and the Niterider Cherrybomb were all high on the list. Many people expressed an interest in DiNotte’s lights, but unfortunately we were unable to acquire one for this review and the company declined to loan a light for the review.

I’m sure you’re all dying to know which light is the best, but first, let’s take a look at the contenders.

This review is so good it comes with a table of contents, check it out here.

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Illuminations Bike Tour

The Somerville Bicycle Committee and Somerville Arts Council will lead the second annual Illuminations bike tour on Saturday, December 17, 2011.

This is a fairly slow ride that goes by some of the most well lit houses in the city. The tour is about an hour long with many stops to chat and see the lights.

Details:

Meet Location: Somerville High School
Meet Day: Dec 17 2011
Meet Time: 6:00pm
Departure: 6:20pm
Required: warm clothes & bike lights
Recommended: holiday lights, costumes & good cheer
Suggested Donation to the Somerville Arts Council: $5
Afterwards: Hot drinks & treats at City Hall

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New Signs Encouraging People To Use Lights On South West Corridor

I have gotten multiple reports that there are big signs urging people to use lights at night (as well as reminding them its the law) on the southwest corridor. This is for sure the time of year when you need some good lights on your bike, be sure to have a white front light, and a red back light, and make sure they are bright!

Its things like this that don’t cost the city much money or effort that are going to be important in changing the culture of Boston. Little things do matter, thanks City of Boston!

EDIT: now with video! Thanks William!

He says:

Looks like the Boston police are enforcing light laws on the SW corridor bike path. I passed a flashing traffic sign that said, “Be Bright, Bike With Lights At Night, Massachusetts State Law”. Here’s a short video I took of the sign: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4JxiN_pA6QE

The next time I passed through, there was a police car with lights flashing at the intersection. At Lamartine and Atherton, I think. A helmetless, lightless biker passed me on the path, and was flagged down, lectured, and probably ticketed by the cop.

Thought you’d like to know and maybe pass that on to your readers. Looks like the Boston police are serious about enforcing at least some cycling laws.

I doubt they were given tickets (I could be wrong) but they most likely were given a talking to, which is totally fine in my opinion.

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