Originally Posted by
europa
On a rainy, dull day, you're a mug not to wear hi-vis. Full daylight in Australia, there's not a lot of benefit. Indeed, when hi-vis was first introduced here when I was working on the roads, the yellows proved dangerous because they blended in with the Aussie bush, hence the move to orange.
It's horses for courses and cyclists need to be aware of their surroundings and choose accordingly.
Totally agree, but I live in Australia and *always* wear some kind of bright colour or flouro vest. I also run lights during the daytime when riding on anything other than slow urban roads (and mostly then as well). As a car driver, I regularly observe groups of cyclists and have no doubt that those wearing bright / flouro colours and/or flashing lights are significantly (sometimes dramatically so) more visible than riders with normal or dull coloured clothing.
I have no doubt that it could be a life and death difference in many cases. I may look like a dork, but I do everything I can to be seen by drivers.
Interesting about the visibility of yellow vs orange. I can see that this could happen in some places, but I can't think of many places in temperate climates with greenery where yellow would not be visible. It's all about standing out from the surroundings - a sort of anti-camouflage!