Blaze light - genius or damp squib?

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The fat commuter
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Re: Blaze light - genius or damp squib?

Post by The fat commuter »

Postboxer wrote:How about the rear lights that project two red lines onto the road to mark out your space, anyone tried those?

Image



Those lines look a bit close to me. They may actually encourage close passes.
stewartpratt
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Re: Blaze light - genius or damp squib?

Post by stewartpratt »

bogmyrtle wrote:I just don't get it. It doesn't light up the road to help you actually see and it doesn't do anything to help prevent close passes from behind


Of course, but that assumes those are the only two things you'd ever want something to do :)

It certainly alerts pedestrians to your presence when on shared paths, or perhaps when they're about to step off the pavement without looking over their shoulder. For this reason I can see it being of some use to some people.

As for drivers… it's rather less of a sure thing. The two potential scenarios are: when you're both approaching a junction from perpendicular directions, and when someone's about to left-hook you by looking to where they're turning rather than in their mirror or over their shoulder. I'm heavily sceptical in the first scenario and frankly still pretty sceptical in the second. But if you have the cash and you don't mind staring at a green bicycle symbol while you ride, then—well, it's hard to criticise people for wanting to clutch at straws, really. I didn't feel it did anything for me. But who knows: if it does prevent that one left-hook, maybe it's worth the money.
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661-Pete
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Re: Blaze light - genius or damp squib?

Post by 661-Pete »

Some of these 'robotic' illumination aids might be of 'help' to any driverless cars that happen to be passing. But how many driverless cars are out there on our roads, to date? :shock:

Having said that, the way some vehicles on our roads are driven, they might just as well be 'driverless'....
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bogmyrtle
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Re: Blaze light - genius or damp squib?

Post by bogmyrtle »

stewartpratt wrote:
bogmyrtle wrote:I just don't get it. It doesn't light up the road to help you actually see and it doesn't do anything to help prevent close passes from behind


Of course, but that assumes those are the only two things you'd ever want something to do :)

It certainly alerts pedestrians to your presence when on shared paths, or perhaps when they're about to step off the pavement without looking over their shoulder. For this reason I can see it being of some use to some people.

As for drivers… it's rather less of a sure thing. The two potential scenarios are: when you're both approaching a junction from perpendicular directions, and when someone's about to left-hook you by looking to where they're turning rather than in their mirror or over their shoulder. I'm heavily sceptical in the first scenario and frankly still pretty sceptical in the second. But if you have the cash and you don't mind staring at a green bicycle symbol while you ride, then—well, it's hard to criticise people for wanting to clutch at straws, really. I didn't feel it did anything for me. But who knows: if it does prevent that one left-hook, maybe it's worth the money.


If you were at a junction preparing to turn left the bike symbol would be projected straight over the road until the handlebars are actually turned to the left. This could be problematic for drivers. Projecting lights either front or rear just don't make sense on turns.
A bike does more miles to the banana than a Porsche.
iviehoff
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Re: Blaze light - genius or damp squib?

Post by iviehoff »

Postboxer wrote:How about the rear lights that project two red lines onto the road to mark out your space, anyone tried those?
Image

I saw a cyclist using them just yesterday for the first time. But they were not properly adjusted as in the above photo, rather the image was much further forward and twisted at a substantial angle. Also they weren't really noticeable until you got rather close, and they became fainter from time to time perhaps due to road surface. Tends to indicate that they are not easily set up properly. I agree, even in the above photo, the lines are much too close together. The lines should really be about 3m apart (1.5m from centreline) if they are to indicate a safe passing distance.
SA_SA_SA
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Re: Blaze light - genius or damp squib?

Post by SA_SA_SA »

Wouldn't a white solid beam on the ground in front of the bike (just like from motor vehicle dipped beam) be just as effective without requiring a laser or giving away that you are a cyclist rather than a heavier motorcycle?
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661-Pete
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Re: Blaze light - genius or damp squib?

Post by 661-Pete »

I think I get what the aim of these gadgets is, but what we need is for the cyclist, and his/her bike, to be more visible, not a projected hologram, or whatever, some yards away. So I have to say I'm still a bit perplexed. No-one's going to get killed if a lorry runs over a hologram...
Suppose that this room is a lift. The support breaks and down we go with ever-increasing velocity.
Let us pass the time by performing physical experiments...
--- Arthur Eddington (creator of the Eddington Number).
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