Thursday, August 23, 2007

Could LED police car lights be a hazard?

I don't have the answer to that question, but I wonder about it every time I pass those lights at night. Patrick is correct in this post when he says that drivers must slow down and move over when they see officers on the side of the road. Deputy Tim Johnson would not have been severely injured and his brother Deputy Kevin Johnson would not have been endangered if people followed Patrick's advice and obeyed the law. Just the same, I know from experience that those LED lights wreak havoc on your night vision. They are also somewhat mesmerizing. If you combine those two things with a driver that is either extremely fatigued or, worse yet, drunk, and I can see those LEDs drawing erratic drivers like moths to a yard light. I know that the lights are designed to improve the visibility of squad cars, but I have developed a concern that in certain situations, they may actually increase the danger officers are in during roadside traffic stops.

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