Protection Before a Crash is one Focus of Nationwide GM Tour

A press release today from GM explains that the company is about to embark on a nationwide tour showing off technologies that reduce or prevent accidents.

Daytime running lamps are one such technology. The story's quote:

Other safety features that will be highlighted include...

Daytime Running Lamps, a proven lifesaving technology that has helped save more than 430 lives in the last decade by making vehicles more visible to pedestrians and cyclists.

Here is the link to the press release:

http://www.prdomain.com/companies/G/GeneralMotors/newsreleases/200683035245.htm

GM has been adding white light DRLs to cars since 1993, and have employed their version of AMBER turn signal DRLs to vehicles since 1997. Below is a picture of a 1988 Chevy Pickup with Universal Amber Turn Signal DRLs added aftermarket. Note that this vehicle is a 'quad bulb' car (it has 4 turn signal bulbs in front, instead of the standard 2 front turn signal bulbs). Click on the photo for an enlarged view.














P.S. These are not parking lights; the photo below is the parking lights.

To Parking Light DRL or to not parking light drl...?

Is this a question?

I can across a Honda SUV blog today, and there seems to be some confusion about amber DRLs.

It looks like a number of people think there might be such a thing as 'parking light' DRLs. Just to set the record straight, NHTSA (and Transport Canada) has ruled that parking lights (actually the 7 watt bulb inside the standard 21 watt/7 watt dual filament directional signal bulb) are too dim to be used effectively as DRLs during daytime hours.
It would be a lot easier to build a parking light DRL system, since it would not have to handle the turn signals/hazard lights 'flashing' being required to override the DRL 'on' functioning. Also, a parking light DRL device would just be illegal in the US and Canada. Code says turn signals must be 2.5 to 3 times brighter than parking lights, to allow for significant visible contrast during nighttime turn signal operation.

Here is the Honda SUV blog link:
http://www.hondasuv.com/stg/viewtopic.php?t=18387

Here is a cool car with TURN SIGNAL [sometimes thought of as 'parking light'] DRLs - a 2003 Chrysler PT Cruiser [click on the photo for a larger view].

By the way, this page shows some contrast between parking lights and turn signals energized on several different cars, including a Honda Accord:

http://www.daytime-running-lights.com/protected?pageid=39&catstart=0&prodstart=0

Rise in Motorcycle and Pedestrian Deaths in 2005

Here's the latest on the highest number of highway - related traffic deaths in the US since 1990!

Rise in Motorcycle and Pedestrian Deaths Led to Increase
in Overall Highway Fatality Rate in 2005

8-22-06 Press Release

An increase in motorcycle and pedestrian deaths contributed to an overall rise in highway fatalities in 2005, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced today. The total number of fatalities rose 1.4 percent from 42,836 in 2004 to 43,443 in 2005 while the rate of fatalities was 1.47 fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles traveled (VMT), up from 1.45 in 2004.

Despite the spike in motorcycle and pedestrian fatalities, Acting Secretary of Transportation Maria Cino noted other fatality trends were improving. She explained that the number of young drivers dying in car crashes declined in 2005 for the third straight year while the number of children who were killed in crashes also declined. The largest drop was for children ages 8-15.

“We have no tolerance for any numbers higher than zero,” said Acting Secretary Cino. “Motorcyclists need to wear their helmets, drivers need to buckle up and all motorists need to stay sober.”

The Acting Secretary said the increase in vehicle fatalities comes from the dramatic rise in the number of motorcycle fatalities and increases in the number of pedestrian fatalities over the previous year. She noted, for example, that motorcycle fatalities rose 13 percent from 4,028 in 2004 to 4,553 in 2005 and that almost half of the people who died were not wearing a helmet. The number of pedestrian fatalities increased to 4,881 in 2005 from 4,675 in 2004, the Acting Secretary added. NHTSA is investigating this year’s increase in pedestrian fatalities to determine the cause.

Cino said NHTSA is working to reduce the number of motorcycle fatalities by encouraging motorcyclists to get proper training, always wear helmets, and absolutely never drink and ride. She added that the Department’s Federal Highway Administration is working with state and local governments to improve pedestrian safety and that the agency is providing more than $600 million over the next three years to help states develop pedestrian safety programs.

Specifically, NHTSA’s Fatality Analysis Reporting System shows that, between 2004 and 2005, the number of young drivers (16-20) killed declined by 4.6 percent from 3,538 to 3,374. Fatal crashes involving young drivers declined by 6.3 percent from 7,431 to 6,964. Meanwhile, the number of children 0-15 dying in crashes dropped from 2,622 in 2004 to 2,348 in 2005.

Cino added that the number of people injured in motor vehicle crashes declined 3.2 percent from 2.8 million in 2004 to 2.7 million in 2005. Passenger vehicle occupant fatalities also dropped by 451, from 31,866 in 2004 to 31,415 in 2005, the lowest level since 1994.

In addition, the number of fatalities from large truck crashes declined slightly from 5,235 to 5,212, while the number of occupants killed in rollover crashes increased 2.1 percent from 10,590 to 10, 816. And the number of SUV rollover fatalities dropped 1.8 percent from 2,929 to 2,877.

“We will not be satisfied until the fatality and injury numbers reach zero,” said NHTSA Administrator Nicole Nason.

Source: http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/

Evidence on our website shows that Turn Signal DRLs could help significantly in many of these areas.

Advice about DRLs

This blog is a open call for anyone who would like to know more about DRLs - what they are, how they work, what type are best, and will they or which ones will work on my car. Some people don't care for DRLs, but let's keep it light. Because it's not about seeing better, it's about being seen better.

Our company sells the finest quality and most effective DRLs ever, and much info about DRLs can be found at our website:
www.daytime-running-lights.com or at BestDRLs.com

Oh, this is a photo of a 1970 Ford Boss 351 Mustang® (a Boss 429 clone) with turn signal daytime running lights. Click on the picture for a better view.