QUESTION: Is it safe to road bike at night? — Anonymous
RBR’S STAN PURDUM REPLIES: With the right lights and reflective clothing, it can be about as safe as daylight riding and perhaps a bit more so, because after dark, your lights really stand out and call attention to your presence on the road. The exception is if you are in a high-traffic area where your light is just one of many drivers have to pay attention to.
Regarding lights, you need two types: one to enable you to see the road surface in front of you and make you noticeable to oncoming drivers and one (or more) to enable overtaking drivers to see you. But with the modern LED lights now widely available for bicycles, it’s not difficult to acquire these.
The front unit, which should be put out white light, illuminates the road to help you avoid potholes, debris, scurrying animals, parked cars and other obstacles, while also making you noticeable to oncoming traffic. Typically, this light should be mounted on your handlebars and aimed so as to light up the road immediately in front of your wheel and keep you visible to oncoming drivers. This light shouldn’t be so bright that it blinds oncoming drivers.
When using a front light for daytime running, it’s advisable to use it in flashing mode, but at night, it needs to be constantly on, so you want to be sure that light will burn for as long as you plan to ride.
The rear light, which should be red, helps drivers be aware of you. Where you mount this depends on whether you have a fender, a rear rack. an under-the-seat bag, or some other provision for carrying cargo, but it is essential that this light be aimed toward the rear parallel to the road. Some rear lights come with a bracket that mounts to your seatpost, but a light in that location is easily blocked by other stuff on the bike, so you may need to create a bracket of your own. Too often, mounting it on a seat bag leaves the light sagging and shining downward instead of rearward. For more about this, see “Living to Ride Another Day.”
Whether using your rear light for either daytime running or nighttime riding, it should be pulsing for maximum noticeability. If, however, you have two rear lights, you may want to keep the second one steady, so that, as with tail-lights on a car, the steady light will help drivers recognize their proximity to you.
But lights are just the start. It’s also important to wear reflective clothing — this is no time for black garments or other dark garb that renders you virtually invisible. I recently acquired and reviewed a jacket that’s expressly designed for visibility, but there are many options for bike clothes with florescent accents.
And these reflective accents, especially when they are on your feet or legs, really increase the likelihood of you being seen as the up-and-down movement of your legs as you pedal is proven to catch the eye of overtaking drivers. (For more on this, see “Study: Cyclists Safer on the Road when Using These High Visibility Items.”) Some pedals include reflectors on the edges that face traffic, which also provides eye-catching movement, and you can add patches of reflective tape around the heels of your cycling shoes for the same purpose.
If possible, avoid high-traffic areas when riding at night.
Stan Purdum has ridden several long-distance bike trips, including an across-America ride recounted in his book Roll Around Heaven All Day, and a trek on U.S. 62, from Niagara Falls, New York, to El Paso, Texas, the subject of his book Playing in Traffic. Stan, a freelance writer and editor, lives in Ohio. See more at www.StanPurdum.com.
It’s important to keep in mind that cars are not the only cycling hazard at night. I know of 2 different cyclists who have hit deer.
Yep ! I have also encountered skunks, possum, raccoons and snakes out on the roads where I live in North Carolina..
Good point. Thanks.
I rode to work in the dark for a year. Close to half of my ride was on a MUP. I had a good headlight along with front and rear blinkies. One morning I was on a downhill section of the trail when I hit a small roll of welded-wire fence. It was the same color as the trail asphalt and it cast no shadow, so I didn’t see it until I hit it. I did an endo and landed on my face on the asphalt. I don’t know if I would have missed if I were riding in the day, but it has put a fear of night riding in me. I had a friend that also came on it in the daylight and he nearly hit it as well.
I never had an issue with traffic. They always gave me a wide berth on the road. My headlight illuminated the road or trail very well. I saw everything in my path except that roll of fence.
As an oncoming rider, I really despise front blinkies. They are distracting and often blinding. A solid light is much easier to deal with. In the rear I’ve used two lights, one on each seat stay, in continuous, non blinking (i.e. legal) mode. I dont know how blinking became so popular–maybe a little bicycle exceptionalism? I also liked putting reflective tape on the wheel rims, as cars can approach from any direction.
I suppose people can ride when they’re able, but I’d avoid riding after sunset. If you’re only factoring visibility to motorists I firmly believe that’s a mistake. Other posts mentioned hitting animals, potholes, and inability to see objects. Extremely valid points. In my area there’s also lots of roadkill.
Smartphones have created huge distractions because people most often are going to grab their phone when they hear the “ding” of a text coming in or answer a call. I wear hi vis yellow literally head to toe in daylight – and I’ve still had close calls and I live deep in rural farmland. Though consumption of alcohol can take place at any time, it’s most apt to be consumed in the evening and creates yet another factor. A driver could truly feel he/she is fine to drive, but the alcohol, marijuana (in some states), and possible interaction with everyday medications may cause judgment problems.
What you do to protect yourself cannot be the only factor. I firmly believe consideration must be made for factors completely out of your control like the distracted motorist.
I’m the end it’s up to each person if they want to take on additional hazards that night riding will almost assuredly bring. It’s not worth the risk to me, but that’s an individual choice.
I looked once at accident statistics and riding at night is a lot more dangerous. Many more accidents, many fewer cyclists on the roads. That math is *not* in our favour.
Stay extremely visible to the car drivers always good advice. After dark nobody cares how cool you look. I can tell you that car drivers do appreciate it when you make yourself maximum visible to them.
If have lights and you’re wearing a hi-viz vest (even an unstylish construction vest) then no car driver can say “I didn’t see you”.
In my case, I often finish rides around sunset/just after dark and I try to do these rides where I finish on the car-free bike path if one is available.
But if you’re on a bike path. turn down the headlight (angle and intensity) and tail light please. Nothing worse than another cyclist blinding me with the headlight, or having to follow after dark a blinking red tail light completely wiping out my night vision with each flash.
I completely agree with you. It’s ludicrous to say that it is as safe to ride at night as during the day. I avoid riding after dark, and the times I had no choice because of mechanical issues, etc., I was extra cautious of the way I was riding after it got dark. I even got off the road during a heavy downpour in daytime this summer because I was having trouble seeing and I figured that motorists would be having trouble seeing as well. Better to be safe than sorry, or dead.
Safety and visibility are the obvious concerns. I’ve thought a vest with two strips of vertical lights that would alternatingly strobe up and down to ‘mimic’ the pedal strokes might make the connection in drivers’ heads that this is a slower moving cyclist, rather than a stationary lamp post or another car.
Another issue with nighttime riding is that some people don’t see well in the dark, either because of poor vision or party-induced impairment. Stay always vigilant!
Several bicyclists have been killed while riding at night where I live. Same with motorcyclists. It’s bs to say that it is as safe to ride at night as during the day. A lot of motorists are zoned in on looking for two headlights or two taillights on other cars or trucks while driving at night, they aren’t thinking about bikes on the road at night, and they just don’t realize that a bike is in front of them until it is too late. Be extra careful if you must or choose to ride at night!
Good points all around. However, if you go out very late at night there is a lot less traffic. In the winter I frequently ride at night. I get the whole road to myself most of the time. For the few cars that do approach, I just get off the road and stop until they pass. As far as potholes and such, I am riding laps around my home and staying within a mile of the house. So I know most of the obstacles to avoid. I stay within a mile because if I flat in the winter I am not going to bother trying to fix it; I am just going to walk my bike home. No need to get hypothermia fixing a flat.
I’ve ridden at night a lot of times, even back in the day when the brightest light on a bike was an incandescent bulb powered by 2D batteries! And the taillight wasn’t even as bright as a candle!! Never had an accident back then. Today when I ride at night I use two headlights, my brightest one is on steady mode, and the other is on strobe mode at2Dtached to the helmet (that strobe light I use in the daytime on the bars). Then I use three taillights, the brightest one is on steady mode, one is on flashing mode, and the other is on my helmet on an alternating mode from side to rear, (during the day I use the brightest one only but it’s on flash).
At night I also wear a cheap Home Depot safety mesh vest with wide reflective bands on it, plus reflective ankle straps. Some of the clothes I wear have very limited reflective stuff on them, as do my helmet and shoes.
I haven’t had any issues not seeing potholes etc. There are animals out and about, the closest I came to getting hit by an animal was a deer that jumped across my path about 9 feet in front of me. But I’ve had squirrels and groundhogs dart out in front me during the day.
Riding at night is more dangerous than daylight. You can’t see as well, and drivers can’t see you as well.
I rode 15 miles each way to work year-round for years. Most riding was in the dark. As others note, lights and reflective garments are key. But you still are at risk.