There’s an ongoing discussion in bicycle and motorcycle circles about the usefulness of safety vests, ankle straps and lights when sharing the road with those who drive cars and trucks.
On one hand, more lights and reflectivity means greater visibility, which is important when you are a vulnerable road user (i.e., not encased in a motor vehicle) and especially important if your rate of speed is slower than that of a motor vehicle.
On the other hand, there is an argument against excessive visibility because of something called the Moth Effect, which suggests that automobile drivers can be hypnotized by bright colors and lights, to the point that their attention is drawn from the road and to the vulnerable road user aiming for greater visibility (with neon safety vests and flashing lights). This diversion of attention can cause the motorist to actually drive towards, and into, the brighter focal point.
There’s an interesting article about it here:
https://www.visualexpert.com/Resources/motheffect.html
I don’t ride in the rain at night at all anymore; and I try not to ride at night on dry days, especially in the winter. During the summer months, when daylight takes longer to fade, it’s actually quite lovely to take a neighborhood spin just before dusk, and sometimes that means I don’t get home until closer to dark.
I’ve always erred slightly to the side of caution. Lights front and rear (though I prefer steady, rather than flashing, lights), and a reflective ankle strap to keep my pant leg out of the chain.
The switch of Bike Happy Hour to a location closer to home means I’m more likely to be out just after dusk on the way home. I’m upping my visibility game with a safety vest of some kind (they’re ridiculously cheap, starting at under ten bucks for something simple like the one shown below), and adding ankle straps to both legs.
I figure that, Moth Effect or no, if I’m decked out like a Christmas tree on acid and I get hit by a car, the driver should be at fault. Because if he didn’t see me while I was glowing in the freaking dark, he was driving with his eyes closed. So I’m decking out.
What’s your opinion on the Moth Effect? Real or imagined? Any anecdotal evidence in either direction?
Discuss.
1 comment:
As someone who bikes, walks, and runs on dark country roads with no sidewalks and few street lights, I am a big fan of steady lights and reasonable reflective gear. I also pay attention to how drivers behave; when walking and running, I'm facing oncoming traffic, so I can see them, and I always leave room to dive to the side of the road if it's clear someone doesn't see me. When cycling, drivers approach me from behind, so I watch for how my shadow moves.
It's clear that reflective gear and moderate steady lights let me be seen much earlier than otherwise. And as a driver, I'm very grateful for cyclists, walkers, and runners who use reflective gear.
My impression about the moth effect is that the evidence primarily involves flashing lights on police cars and other emergency vehicles. In my experience, those are often so bright these days as to be blinding to older drivers, or at least so bright that they make it hard to see anything else.
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