Originally Posted by AcornMan

I have to disagree strongly with that. A good headlight/taillight combo does a great job of making you visible to people in front and behind you, but without lights for side visibility, a vehicle approaching from the side won't see you until you're illuminated in its headlights, and that can be much too late. Spoke lights make a bicycle visible much sooner. The way I became aware of spoke lights was by observing someone using them in my neighborhood while I was driving, and I will definitely attest to their effectiveness.