Bright headlights should be banned
Over-bright headlights are blinding when driving at night. I took my bestie to the airport yesterday and drove home, partially in the dark. Some of my problem was on the interstate, but I actually had more issues in town.
It's the headlights that are basically pure-white and seem to shoot a beam straight out. Traditional headlights have a yellow tint, and the headlight cover diffuses the light (its like foggy glass/plastic) so the light comes out in a sort of cloud instead of a beam, and makes it much less bothersome to see while driving at night. Traditional headlights also seem to direct their light toward the ground & this newer breed seems to shoot the light straight ahead.
Once I was in a turn lane & straight ahead of me in the opposite-direction turn lane was someone with these extremely bright lights. Once the arrow turned green and I went ... once this car was out of my sight, I notice I had massive blind spots in my eyes for a couple of minutes.
I literally could not look in my mirrors last night because it was literally blinding. I had to lean right so I was more center so that the light from my side mirror wasn't shining straight into my eyes.
There were probably 6 cars in town that pained me during the 20 minute in-town drive home.
I think we need some legislation to fix this. It's bothered me for years, and I've talked to other people who are bothered by it too. I wonder if its a real safety hazard or just a real pain in the ass.
My proposal is for state-level legislation (which I may email my rep about later), along the lines of:
- Headlights must be yellow tinted (within a range deemed safe & effective by experts in this space).
- Headlights must be within certain brightness ranges (as deemed by experts in this space).
- Headlights must direct their light toward the ground within a certain distance (as specified by experts)
- "Brights" are still allowed (where your headlight control has a toggle to make them extra bright for long dark country roads & stuff)
- Existing stock of cars and headlights may be sold.
- If funding is available, grant programs will be made available for drivers to get in-regulation headlights to replace their over-bright headlights. Drivers would not be required to get these replacements. This would be administered by the Secretary of State (who runs the DMV), grant funding would be procured by licensed mechanics (independent mechanics and drivers could also apply), and parts prices would be monitored to ensure that manufacturers and mechanics are not up-charging to take advantage of the tax-payer-funded grant programs. The state could also work with municipalities to setup large-scale headlight replacement events, possibly using mechanics who are on-staff with the city. (cities tend to have a lot of their own vehicles so I suspect they have their own mechanics too)
- All new cars sold in my state must adhere to the new headlight regulations.
- All newly-built replacement headlights purchased in my state must adhere to these headlines.
- Used cars and used car parts do not have to adhere to these regulations.
- There will be no punishment for drivers with bright headlights or consumers purchasing bright headlights or independent mechanics (fixing your friend's car). Businesses are liable - car manufacturers, car dealers, licensed repair shops, parts stores. Drivers who purchase a car out of state or are moving to my state also would not be impacted by this legislation.
I am comfortable with adding some exceptions for special-use vehicles, and tweaking details above. I am no expert in this space. In crafting said legislation, legislators should be wary of so-called "experts" who speak on behalf of industries.