Originally Posted by
schoolboy2
Thanks for all the great info. I'll be getting us bells as we don't have them currently.
Why are blinking rear lights forbidden??
Should I use blinking bicycle lights? - Bikeshed
Many manufacturers include blinking modes because some people think it is safer because people in cars will see them better; an assumption which has not been proven. It is even more far fetched to to state that flashing lights are safer. It's an interesting topic, since it all depends on the conditions and expectations of those involved.
Various studies into the differences between flashing and continuous lights in various applications (for example for
snow ploughs) have yielded the following conclusions:
- Flashing lights are easier to notice.
- It is harder to judge distance of a blinking light.
- Intoxicated drivers somehow manage to run into blinking lights thanks to the the "moth effect"
The fact that it is harder to estimate the distance is a pretty serious argument against flashing lights. The noticeability also depends on the lack of other flashing lights.
Germany and the Netherlands has done a lot of research into bicycle lights and basically; steady lights are easier to track and will stand out just as much if not more than blinking lights when it comes to driver response.
Most cops won't pull you over if you ride with a blinking light but you are more likely to be ticketed when they do.
Other than that, buy some cycling maps or look up what routes there are. And stay off the highway. In the Netherlands we have had to pluck tourists off the A10 ring of Amsterdam where there is a 100km/h (
60mph) speed limit. That's just dangerous.