just got back from a bike ride to my favorite pizza shop... my flashing amber front light was recently ruined by leading AAAs, so replaced it with an inexpensive LED bike white light with a flashing function... additionally I use a LED MiniMaglight for illumination... the response by motorists was amazing, much better than with the amber...I did cover a portion of the top lens with black electrician tape to block the flash from my direct vision...

great idea - remember to add reflective material to your bike, pack, helmet and water bottle

When I saw amber I was thinking thats not a good color for a light. Amber is the signal color, amber means your signaling to turn. Ever see some of these never cars which use amber as the DRL, every get one as a rental. Everyone pulls out in front of you, they glance your way and see amber and assume your turning so they are safe to pull out.

I have the red PB superflash on the back of mine BTW.

Just yesterday I encountered a cyclist with a flashing white light in full daylight - very conspicuous and obvious. Highly recommended.

A friend of mine was in a bike lane and lit up like a Christmas tree, but it didn't prevent him from being hit from behind. With other lights as distractions, you can't be lit up enough riding at night.

Having lots of light does not means you are more visible. Lots of people have there lights aimed to high and are blinding others. Which makes you very visible, but not less likely to be hit.

Strobe lights are also interesting. While visible, it does make it harder to see distance. Especially in bad weather condition.

Keep in mind local law varies as well. IIRC, here in WA I think it is technically illegal to have a flashing white headlight, but I think amber is OK. That said everyone does it anyway. [edit: after additional research, it seems you can have amber, but it still can't blink. no red lights allowed 'cept in back]

That said, be careful not to blind oncoming motorists. My personal approach is to have two lights, one bright (700-1800lumens), not blinking, aimed down to illuminate the road and not blind motorists, and another less bright (<=80lumens), non-directional light, blinking for safety.

Also environmental context is important. Rural fast moving roads are much different and have different considerations vs a populous city core. In the former, being seen from behind is important, in the city, 360 degree visibility is key (and hard to attain).

-john

That's interesting. I've never heard of a local law like that. I would think common sense would dictate that a constant white light would at least be legal in that situation, otherwise the law is essentially making it impossible for a cyclist to be able to illuminate their path on a dark night. (In this case, I'm talking about laws that were written a long time ago, where cyclists rode more slowly than now, and often on less heavily travelled roads, so seeing the road was more important than being seen by cars, which is a higher concern in most places nowadays.)

I live in San Francisco, so there are tons of people who commute to work via bicycle. I used to ride a lot but in my personal risk-benefit calculation, I think the risk is too great to commute by bike from my house to work everyday. Anyway, to be seen by others, I think a flashing white light makes the most sense. Most motorists equate white light with something headed your way, and red with something moving away from you. Amber? That's iffy, and requires the driver to concentrate harder to figure out what is going on.

However, as has been mentioned earlier, too many cyclists use a combination of a very bright LED light and aim them too high. Dazzling drivers does not enhance cyclist safety and just annoys everyone else. That said, it's almost unbelievable how bright some bike lights are now. I'll be walking down the street in the dark and I sometimes see a big wall of light approaching from behind. Is it a silent hybrid car coming up (a common occurence here)? No, it's a cyclist! Amazing.

But really, I think raising the awareness of motorists is the biggest contributor to improving safety. And that goes for making things safer for motorcyclists, too. Illumination and reflectors only help so much, but if a car makes a bonehead move when a bicycle is right there, the only way the motorist knows you're there is when the cyclist comes flying onto the hood of the car.

Solid white headlight is not only legal, but required after dark.



I think the prohibition on flashing front light is generic, not specific to bikes. There is a clause specifically allowing blinking red taillights on bike.



Note there is also a clause about the aiming of lights:



-john

I recommend using lithium batteries--if for no other reason, they won't leak and ruin your equipment.