Night time driving

[awa355]

According to tonights news, NZ'rs are the third worst night time drivers in the developed world.

Are we?? Who are the two countries that dare assume, they are better than us at lousy driving after dark?


Only a Bronze for bad night time driving, Surely, we can do better. I would start with abolishing driving tests altogether, remove the requirement to indicate, amongst other measures.

On a serious note, on night driving, when it is pouring with rain on the motorways, the reflection of the motorway lights off the wet surface makes many headlights redundant. The road lane markings are just about impossible to see.

Would switching those orange lights off, help?

[FJRider]

Maybe ... part of license testing ... X number of hours night driving ...

and street lighting on ALL roads ...

[PrincessBandit]

Not to mention not outriding/driving your headlight range...(or ability to be prepared for what lies just outside the beam)

Oh noes, that might mean dropping the speed a little to better prepare for the unexpected. Can't have that.

[Subike]

blaming poor road lighting is just another excuse for bloody poor driving skills
If as many of us know, driver training in NZ was better, things like this would not be such a problem.
Its lazy drivers, with little skill traveling at the ""safe speed"" that cause the problem,
Some dont understand the 100kph limt, is for good conditions, not all conditions

[FJRider]

Oh noes, that might mean dropping the speed a little to better prepare for the unexpected. Can't have that.

That's the solution ... lower the speed limit by 20 km's after sunset.

Problem solved ...

[Road kill]

I prefer night time driving over day time.

Not so much on my bike though,the bugs seem bigger at night time.

I'd love to know who came up with the figures,,,and what their $$angle$$ is.

[Gremlin]

I don't know what you lot are going on about.

There seems to be a decent proportion who can't turn their lights on... we're talking pitch dark, residential streets, city streets, motorways, nah, fuck it, don't need lights. I won't even try to make comments about dusk if they can't do it at night. For those clued up enough to realise what I'm trying to tell them, a percentage struggle to actually turn on their lights (or get high beam).

For those that just stare at me blankly...

I do struggle to believe there are countries that are worse.

I travel a fair bit at night. Probably half the week involves a trip at dusk/night and I've done a lot of night riding, including riding the whole night and even some adventure riding. The views are shit though

[Akzle]

...remove the requirement to indicate, amongst other measures.

On a serious note, on night driving, when it is pouring with rain on the motorways, the reflection of the motorway lights off the wet surface makes many headlights redundant. The road lane markings are just about impossible to see.

Would switching those orange lights off, help?

fucken reckon. who indicates anyway?!
our road marking is shocking. a bit of surface water and it disappears. i believe in yurp they grind up recycled glass which adds reflectivity to the road marking paint...
also think they should pull out every second lamp post from motorways where they have them.
and restrict cocks with 4x4s in town from having 10 bajillion watt kryptonite hyper-daytime bulbs, they're just not fucking necessary.

[mashman]

fucken reckon. who indicates anyway?!
our road marking is shocking. a bit of surface water and it disappears. i believe in yurp they grind up recycled glass which adds reflectivity to the road marking paint...
also think they should pull out every second lamp post from motorways where they have them.
and restrict cocks with 4x4s in town from having 10 bajillion watt kryptonite hyper-daytime bulbs, they're just not fucking necessary.

We call them Cats Eyes. Just about every road has them (ya kinda take them for granted), but they are feckin brilliant on the long stretches of road and motorway that don't have lights.

@OP: aye, that stupid orange haze in the rain is painful on the eyes, spechully when you've just come out of a pitch black area.

[oneofsix]

I prefer night time driving over day time.

Not so much on my bike though,the bugs seem bigger at night time.

I'd love to know who came up with the figures,,,and what their $$angle$$ is.

A bit buried but perhaps this helps. Seems they want to sell LED street lamps.

awa355 not having lights don't make the markings any more visable

akzle there was a thread a while back about glass beads being left on the road in NZ after the painting of road markings . This would mean they are used in at least some cases.

[YellowDog]

I prefer night time driving over day time.

Not so much on my bike though,the bugs seem bigger at night time.

I'd love to know who came up with the figures,,,and what their $$angle$$ is.

At night time, you can very easily see approaching cars from a long way off.

AND hopefully get back on your own side of the road before they get too close!

[willytheekid]

That's the solution ... lower the speed limit by 20 km's after sunset.

Problem solved ...

...I wouldn't be surprised if they did exactly that mate, it seems to be the ONLY solution the police and the NZTA can ever come up with.
Better driver training, more lighting, etc etc...that all costs money!, and it requires some degree of thought and organization...where as road signs are cheap!, and damn easy to put up.

[FJRider]

At night time, you can very easily see approaching cars from a long way off.

AND hopefully get back on your own side of the road before they get too close!

We won't talk about the things you can't see at night ... like sheep, cattle, horses, rocks, pot-holes ...

[Scuba_Steve]

There seems to be a decent proportion who can't turn their lights on... we're talking pitch dark, residential streets, city streets, motorways, nah, fuck it, don't need lights.

I have found modern cages in well lit streets can be a problem. I've done it on a couple of occasions where I've got 100m down the road before realising my lights ain't on, all because the streets are so well lit up vehicles lights have no effect on my vision & the modern cage come standard with dashboard glowing like it's christmas in Chernobyl at all times unlike older models which waited till headlights were on before lighting up.
I have noticed in the newer of the modern cages there be a headlight light on the dash now to tell you when your headlights on like the high beam one of old (which is also still there).
If you ask me they'd be better off returning to the days of old, dashboard glows when lights go on twas simple, easy & it worked... but then I guess it didn't look as "cool"

[Road kill]

There's no shortage of people in this country that can't drive or ride very well during day light,,,,an have a raft of reasons why it's not their fault.

Put those same people out there in the dark and the problem becomes even larger.

To all those that have posted why "it's the lights,,"it modern cars,,"it's the road marking.

I'm talking to you cunts,,get your shit togeather FFS