Taillight

[Litespeed]

My husband just bought a ViewPoint flashpoint taillight that is visible up to 2000 feet away. He already has a taillight on the rear of the bike but was thinking of mounting this one on the front of his bike. Do you think that is a good idea? I told him it would probably confuse cars by thinking he was going in the opposite direction, but he seems to think that it will catch their attention and by the time they get close enough they will realize he is going straight ahead. He is worried about the cars coming from the opposite direction and taking left hand turns into him at intersections.

[powers2b]

Headlight.
There are legal guidelines that dictate the color of lights on a vehicle.
While it is a great idea for visibiliity it would be best to use a white light in the front.
It is important to be as legal as possible if there is an accident.

[nycm'er]

It is kind of dumb and annoying. Riding in an urban environment there is alot of background light and to not be clear is taking chances with people already distracted with everything but actually driving. Also in this environ I find bike lights useful for other bike crossing situations, unlit bike paths, and so on. To have a red light on the front of the bike is illegal in some, if not all areas. There are some great white/yellow lights, that flash too, to separate you from other BG lights and identify you properly as a bike, approaching the viewer.

[MichaelW]

You wont find anyone who thinks this is a good idea. It is a Very Bad Idea.
If you need to use a rear light, you should use a white front light as well.

[supcom]

White light up front. It's what everyone expects.

[AndrewP]

I see a few flashing red lights on the front of bikes, and they are better than nothing. I have had an off-white flashing LED light on the front of my bike for nearly 10 years. They are not as easy to find as the red ones, but they are available. It is not very bright, but I think the flashing makes it noticable enough. I also use 2 LED headlights, which have only come on the market in the last year or so.

[noisebeam]

Do not put on the front.

I would suggest that it is not redundant to put in on the rear in addtion to what is there already. Especially if they are placed so they are spaced apart vertically. For example I have a steady bright LED taillight on my seat post - but also a flashing one on my helmet.

Al

[2manybikes]

NO red lights on the front.

There are plenty of cheap white ones to pick from. Someone is going to think he is going the wrong way, this may be more chance of a car turning in front of him, they think he is going away from them. It is illegal too.
It's good that he is thinking about the turning car/bike collision. This is one of the more common types of accident. Compliment him on that first, then try to have him switch to white. :)

If he insists on red on the front, buy a white light for him and put it on the bike. $17.for a white front LED light that will blind you if you look into it..........not much.

http://www.performancebike.com/shop/profile.cfm?SKU=17695&subcategory_ID=4320

[Dchiefransom]

White on the front, and red on the back. If I look through my state's motor vehicle code, it's in there somewhere. Common sense dictates, also. I've seen cyclists with a bright headlight on the bars, AND a flashing white light up front. It definitely got people's attention. I saw one saomewhere today in a shop that was like the Cygo-Lite Mighty Rad, but was white.

[andygates]

Same as everyone else: white on the front, red on the back.

The principle is that you don't just have to be conspicuous, you have to be perspicuous: it has to be obvious what and where you are as well as just *that* you are. The white/red rule makes it obvious which end is the front, which is pretty essential information to other road users.

[DieselDan]

White on front, red in back. I almost hit some idiot with a red blinkie on the front on the wrong side of the pathway. I don't like blinking lights up front of any color, as it could be misread as a turn signal.

[77Univega]

-- I cannot tell your husband what to do but I would never put a red light on the front of my bicycle. And if I were driving my car at night and saw a red light, I would expect it to be the BACK of some vehicle.