What’s people’s opinions/the law about road bikes using just flashing rear and front lights and no fixed beam in sight?

I always thought it was law to have at least one fixed beam if using a flashing light too? Do people use flashing lights on their own as they think they stand a better chance of being recognised as a cyclist?

The law changed…

http://www.ctc.org.uk/cyclists-library/regulations/lighting-regulations

I drove past someone the other night with 9 rear lights, I counted when at traffic lights, ALL flashing on different patterns, it was horrible and dazzling as a driver. Less is sometimes more. He also had what appeared to be 4/5 front lights but I think one was constant and the rest were doing a crazy out of sync dance.

sazter – Member

I drove past someone the other night with 9 rear lights, I counted when at traffic lights, ALL flashing on different patterns, it was horrible and dazzling as a driver. Less is sometimes more. He also had what appeared to be 4/5 front lights but I think one was constant and the rest were doing a crazy out of sync dance.

Nine individual lights? Where did he put them all? I’ve a Knog blider 4 with (funny enough) 4 leds. I’m thinking of getting a chinese lezyne copy so that’ll be me up to 7. Better to be safe than sorry.

jimjam, there was one on each seatstay, two on the seatpost, one on his helmet, a few on his bag and one or two on his trousers. I saw him, no mistaking that, but was also blinded!

I have one on my seatpost, but being a bmx this is fairly hidden so also have one on my hi-viz backpack cover and a single led on my helmet, I only have the seatpost one flashing, the others are constant, but in poor visibility I change the helmet one to flash too. I have a constant and a flashing one on the front too.

As a driver I prefer both, a constant light so its easy to track the cyclist’s movement and a flashing one to help get my attention if the constant one didn’t.

So that’s what I use when I’m on the bike. It also provides some backup in case one stops working.

sazter – Member

jimjam, there was one on each seatstay, two on the seatpost, one on his helmet, a few on his bag and one or two on his trousers. I saw him, no mistaking that, but was also blinded!

😆 Fair enough.

jairaj

As a driver I prefer both, a constant light so its easy to track the cyclist’s movement and a flashing one to help get my attention if the constant one didn’t.

Keep in mind that (at least in my opinion) the shape of the light is important too. Before buying my Knog Blinder 4 (or lezyne strip or Cat-Eye ld610 etc) I tested it with the Lezyne micro drive. The Lezyne was fractionally brighter up close (negligible at 30ft) but at a distance it got lost in the melee with car tail lights. I followed my buddy up a busy road at night with his Lezyne and whilst I could see the light from huge distances away I quickly lost track of it as traffic moved.

The other strip lights stand out way more in traffic as they are obviously not car tail lights and are more eye catching because they unusual.

i started a post on this last year after i got pulled over by GMP…their reasons for doing so was a great surprise:

so i was riding into work this morning in the pouring rain…as i was heading towards Manchester city centre, via the back of the printworks, a police officer stepped out onto the road and stopped me…
i had my light on flash and i though “oh shit, he’s going to tell me the light isnt road legal and i’m going to get a ticking off/on the spot fine…”
he surprised me with his next comment…
“can i say sir, that your lights are absolutely brilliant! i saw you a mile off coming down the road and all motorists would have done the same!”
there were four of them stopping cyclists and “advising” them on safe road riding tips
the officer then began to tell off another rider who they had pulled up with no lights, using me as an example “this is how you should be doing it” etc
then i got loads of questions about the light itself and they checked i had rear lights so i showed them all 3
they kept me there for 10 minutes before giving me a free reflective vest and a pair of reflective ankle strips
but its now a bit of a relief to know that a 1200 lumen light on flash mode is perfect for use on the road
POSTED 1 YEAR AGO #

http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/pulled-over-by-the-police-today

to add to it at the time i think i had one rear flashin light on the seatpost in addition to the reflector, another light on the seatstay (stays on constant) and one on the camelbak (flash).
in addition to the front one i usually have another that is mounted to the helmet and i also use spoke reflectors which i find very effective (see image below)

i’ve not figured out a way to fit reflectors to my SPD’s though.

the interesting thing though is that i had my light on flash when i got pulled over and i did ask about the legality of this and 2 of the officers were traffic officers and they insisted that it was fine as it made me more noticeable and therefore i should be easier to identify as a cyclist by other road users

i do think it’s pretty poor that manufacturers of both road and mtb clipless pedal systems don’t feel it’s necessary to attach compliant reflectors.
they stick those disposable things in some sets i know, but they’re useless.

three on the rear here

one constant on the seat post and a flashing just below it (knog blinder 4) and a flashing on my bag (Pdw Dangerzone)

two on the front knog flashing and a hope vision 1 on constant (but on low) only turn it up for my last three miles which are unlit bridleway on way home

I’m a fan of mixing it up, my commuter bike has 3 lights, 1 constant, 2 flashing plus I have 1 little LED on the back of my helmet too. Seems to work OK for me.

i’ve not figured out a way to fit reflectors to my SPD’s though.

Simplest way I’ve found it to just buy a set of these for £20.

Shimano T400 spd pedals

Why on God’s green Earth are we still required to have those stupid reflectors fitted? Surely the new powerful LED front and rear lights have moved the game on to such an extent that these are now redundant?

Please don’t give me any shit about making you more visible being a good thing too because with a decent set of LED lights (I use 2 front and back) that’s just laughable.

One of each, front and back. I ride with two Cateye Rapid Minis on the back and an Exposure Strada plus a Cateye Rapid X on flashing on the front.

Less can be more, but I think you need a back up if riding regularly.

Respro ankle bands say CYCLIST about clearer than lights.

I’ve sometimes thought some sort of detachable reflector using Velcro or magnets would be a good idea. Easy to remove for the club run on a Sunday morning or daytime rides. My commute is short but involves people rushing to get out of an industrial estate where speed limits seem entirely optional and I keep thinking a couple more lights would be a good idea.

I drove past someone the other night with 9 rear lights, I counted when at traffic lights, ALL flashing on different patterns, it was horrible and dazzling as a driver. Less is sometimes more. He also had what appeared to be 4/5 front lights but I think one was constant and the rest were doing a crazy out of sync dance.

I passed a lowloader this morning with 5 pairs of flashing lights at the front, all sequenced differently, so it’s not just bikes.

forzafkawi – Member
Why on God’s green Earth are we still required to have those stupid reflectors fitted? Surely the new powerful LED front and rear lights have moved the game on to such an extent that these are now redundant?

It just takes time for the law to catch up with the pace of change. There’ll be a periodic review of legislation and things will get updated if there’s a case made for change. It took a good few years for flashing LED lights to become “legal” even though pretty well everyone agreed that they improved the visibility and safety of cyclists so they spent a while in a sort of limbo where they weren’t legal but you weren’t going to be prosecuted for using them.

Other than the cheap plastic “let’s put a pedal on this to make it a complete bike” style and the occasional SPD pedal like that shown above there isn’t a road legal pedal for sale. How many Look, Speedplay, etc pedals have reflectors? Supposedly the repetitive up and down motion of the reflectors shouts “bike!” Anyone heard of a cyclist being given a fine for not having reflectors on their pedals? I doubt that the average cop even realises that they are required.

there was a case a while back where a guy cycling hit a a girl walking and knocked her over. think she died. there was some altercation/exchange of words involved too. one of the observations made by the officer at the scene was ‘pedals without reflectors’ IIRC.

it’s a reason a defence lawyer might trot out to mitigate a bad situation for their client, if a cyclist was involved in an accident at night, suggesting contributory negligence.

Pedal Reflectors

Four are required, coloured amber and marked BS6102/2 (or equivalent), positioned so that one is plainly visible to the front and another to the rear of each pedal.

Why on God’s green Earth are we still required to have those stupid reflectors fitted? Surely the new powerful LED front and rear lights have moved the game on to such an extent that these are now redundant?

Please don’t give me any shit about making you more visible being a good thing too because with a decent set of LED lights (I use 2 front and back) that’s just laughable.

I’ve got great Led rear lights. But I still think reflectors on moving parts make a massive difference to your visibility. Friends that have seen me out at night (me on a bike, them in a car) have all commented on how effective the reflective strip on the back of my overshoes are at catching the eye. A light is a light, but a reflected foot is, well, human! I like to remind drivers I’m a human too!

so on the basis that its a legal requirement that pedals must have reflectors fitted…if a rider is pulled over by a police officer or is invlved in an accident and a solicitor cathces wind o fht efact that the pedals didnt have refloctors and the rider is penalized for not having them fitted…..given that most of the major pedal manufacturers dont fit them to their SPD pedals….would it be reasonable for the rider to then pursue a claim with the pedal manufacturer for not making pedals that comply with the law?

An interesting question but ultimately the responsibility lies with the rider – it’s up to you to ensure that you comply with the relevant regulations. I’ve not bought any road pedals for a while so can’t remember what, if anything, the accompanying documentation says about this. Presumably there’ll be some get out clause.

Something like a reflective ankle cuff or reflective band on shoes/boots/overshoes should be considered a legal equivalent. (This is a “I’d like to see” not a “this has been established under case law”).

This new light from ChilliTech has apparently passed German K Mark Certification and is cheap – there is a promotional offer for about £45 for this and the rear.

http://www.chilli-tech.com/bike-lights/Cree-LED-Front-Bike-Light

Worth having a compliant light for the same reason as the reflectors, lessen the chance of some lawyer claiming that your lights were correct.

They haven’t listed it on their web page, but are mentioning it on their facebook page.

[video]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YlhjVsj-yaU[/video]

Please don’t give me any shit about making you more visible being a good thing too because with a decent set of LED lights (I use 2 front and back) that’s just laughable.

Hm.

It’s surprising how little people seem to realise about lighting. It’s not about having a bright light becuse in heavy traffic there are bright lights all over the place, so one more doens’t help much. The best thing we can do is identify ourselves as cyclists, and let everyone else know where we are and where we are going.

This is why high viz and other reflectors are a good idea. And also why only using flashing lights is a bad idea, unless they flash very rapidly. The number of cyclists in London riding aroujnd with cripplingly bright Lezyne lights on a really slow blink is amazing. In a melee of traffic with several cyclists it’s downright impossible to see who and what is going where. You want people to be able to follow your movements, and this is not easy if the light is off half the time.