Driver Training

Headlamps

 The earliest headlamps were fueled by acetylene or oil and were introduced in the late 1880s. Acetylene lamps were popular because the flame was resistant to wind and rain. The first electric headlamps were introduced in 1898 and were optional. Two factors limited the widespread use of electric headlamps: the short life of filaments in the harsh automotive environment, and the difficulty of producing dynamos small enough, yet powerful enough to produce sufficient current. 1904 "Prest-O-Lite" acetylene lights were offered by a number of manufacturers as standard equipment and Peerless made electrical headlamps standard in 1908. In 1912, Cadillac integrated their vehicle's Delco electrical ignition and lighting system, creating the modern vehicle electrical system.

"Dipping" (low beam) headlamps were introduced in 1915 the 1917 Cadillac system allowed the light to be dipped with a lever inside the car rather than requiring the driver to stop and get out. The 1924 Bilux bulb was the first modern unit, having the light for both low (dipped) and high (main) beams of a headlamp emitting from a single bulb. A similar design was introduced in 1925 by Guide Lamp called the "Duplo". In 1927, the foot-operated dimmer switch was introduced and became standard for much of the century. The last vehicle with a foot-operated dimmer switch was the 1991 Ford F-Series.

It was around around the late sixties early seventies that the... 'Indicators/flasher/main beam’ switch stalk that we are now all so familiar with started to appear on the steering columns of vehicles around the world.

The Flashing of headlights became common place with many drivers soon after.

A simple flick down and you were on Main or High beam a flick back and you returned to dipped headlights.

Oh yes! whats this...? Flick the switch up...Main beam on... while you hold it...    let it go... Main beam off... Pardon the pun but, ‘It was Brilliant’.

This extremely useful improvement to vehicle design made it much easier for the driver to dip their headlights.

Unfortunately this great improvement also made it very easy for drivers to get into the habit of giving... a potentially confusing and therefore potentially dangerous 'quick flash' to everybody and his mother.

Before the stalk came along; the switch for the lights would normally be found somewhere on the dashboard of the vehicle it frequently incorporated the ignition , side and headlights switch and there was a foot operated dip switch on the floor down by the clutch pedal.

So compared with today flashing the head lights was quite a task, first the switch on the dash needed to be located and turned on and then, to change from full beam to dipped beam or visa versa the foot switch needed to be operated.

The only ways to flash your lights would be to turn the switch from off to on, of course as they were dual switches that meant sidelights first then onto headlamp then back through the sidelight phase to off.

At night if the headlights were on, by the way there was no legal requirement to drive with the headlights on, then to flash, you either operated the foot switch at least twice, once to main beam then again back to dipped or you just, as many drivers did, turned your headlights off and then back on again.

As it was all a bit of an effort to ‘flash’ or you momentarily put yourself completely in the dark, most drivers did not bother to flash their headlights at all.

But now the flashing of the headlights was... so easy. All it needed was just a flick of the switch you didn’t even have to turn the lights on first. Because it was so easy, it has over the years become common (bad) practice.

Advice soon appeared in the Highway Code which gave quite a strict and clear ruling as to why and when to flash the headlamps and also stating we should never flash them for any other reason. This was because of the potential dangers of Headlamp Flashing under other circumstances. These 'rules' and potential dangers however, were and still are, in the main ignored by the general motoring public.

The advice in the Highway Code regarding flashing headlamps has been watered down a little the potential dangers however, have not.

So what are the potential dangers with this very common and rather accepted practice of flashing headlamps?

Well the main danger really is… The potential to confuse…

When we flash our headlights we broadcast a message to our fellow travellers. I am sure you will agree that the Headlights are flashed for a variety of different reasons… so a single flash can broadcast any number of different messages.

·         You go first (I am telling you to go, even though I may not know if it is safe to do so)

·        Look out or excuse me, I’m here (the official meaning, rarely used for this purpose)

·         Get out of my way I want to come through (possible emergency, probably not! )

·         Hello, I know you (but not the other half dozen or so who can also see it)

·         Hey, you just upset me (should not be used as a rebuke, though frequently is)

·        There’s a speed trap ahead (An offence)

·        Your lights are NOT on and I think they should be (No comment)

·       Your lights ARE on and I don’t think they should be (As Above)

·       Your lights are too bright (now we have two dazzled drivers)

·      Thank you! (At night usually leaves the receipient a little blinded for a second or two)

·      Oops! Where’s the windscreen washer in this car?? (Driving a different car)

And you can probably think of plenty more.

So what is the real meaning of the message that we are sending when we do flash our headlights?

Well the actual meaning of any signal or message that is sent, really is in the way that the signal or message is received - the understanding of the meaning is not always the same as that meant by the person sending the message....  It is a lot like the party game 'Chinese whispers'.  

In other words, you know what signal you are giving, the understanding of your signal will depend on the way that your signal is received and interpreted by your fellow road user or road users. I say road users because... If more than one road user can see the headlamp flash, then the problem is... more than one road user could receive it, interpret it and act on it.

I recently witnessed a driver cause just such a problem on a major road in my local town when on approach to some minor cross roads he flashed his headlights.

As a witness to the incident I found out later that... His intention and interpretation of the signal he gave...  was to send a message to the driver of a green car waiting to emerge from the road to his left, saying that he was going to give way and allow him to make a right turn across his path.

At the same time a driver of a red car in the road to the right also emerged attempting to turn to his right. The driver who had flashed then had to brake fairly hard to avoid the green car who emerged, by his invitation, from the left but who did not clear his path as was anticipated, because he collided with a... 'BLEEPING! idiot in a red car’ (his words, well almost, I changed it to bleeping) who emerged from the road on the right. The 'idiot' on the right of course had received the very same message and his interpretation of it  (perhaps just a little understandably) was that the flash was for him to go!

A more serious and fairly well documented situation involved a young pedestrian.

A bus driver flashed his lights, whereupon a young girl pedestrian who had been standing on the pavement ahead of the bus that she had just alighted from, ran across the road into the path of an approaching truck.

It is thought the pedestrian didn't notice the truck because she was too busy waving a 'thank you' to the bus driver!

At the inquest the truck driver said that the bus driver flashed and he thought he was calling him through. Another witness, a car driver who was ahead of the bus at the scene and about to pull away from the kerb said “I was giving a right indicator signal, the bus driver flashed, I thought he was saying I could pull out”. On behalf of the young girl, the coroner said “no doubt the young lady also thought that the signal was for her, an invitation for her to cross the road”. The bus driver, who had almost certainly read the Highway Code between the incident and the inquest, denied ever flashing his headlights!

Before giving any signal, we should consider the possible implications of each and every signal. The 'thank you' flash... that to many drivers is nothing more than simply... an innocent courtesy signal that should always be given... can be potentially a very dangerous signal. We should not be at all surprised if when flashing someone to say thank you or whatever, another driver pulls out in front of us or a pedestrian steps out into the road - that simple signal could so easily be received by someone you did not really mean to give it to.

‘A driver who considers that his or her own version of a signal is better than the signals that are officially recognised would not be absolved from blame, either morale or legal, if his or her version was misunderstood and an incident resulted’.

Rules 110 and 111 of the current Highway Code state; 

Flashing headlights. Only flash your headlights to let other road users know that you are there. Do not flash your headlights to convey any other message or intimidate other road users.

Never assume that flashing headlights is a signal inviting you to proceed. Use your own judgement and proceed carefully.

So we should consider the possible implications of a headlight flash whether given by others... or at times when we may be tempted to give another road user a 'quick flash'.

The next time the need arises for you to give way to another road user, how about trying this...  just simply... slow down or stop as necessary but do it without flashing your lights and see what happens...

You may be surprised to find that the driver goes... very occasionally drivers may appear a little unsure having not been given your 'permission'. You may also notice that the other driver takes just a fraction longer to decide when to go, but that they will almost certainly have a good look around before going. So, please remember that... A second or two longer...  in journey times... could mean a lifetime longer... in safety terms.

 Think More – Do Less

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