Originally Posted by
Tourist in MSN
My pedals do not play well with reflectors, I put red (should have been amber but I only had red) reflective tape on my left side crank arms. Ran out of tape, but since have bought more to put on the right side crank arms.
As someone who buys retroreflective sheeting by the roll, I'll note that although red is technically the correct color for rear-facing reflectors on vehicles, yellow has a much higher luminous intensity per unit of surface area. Also, reflective material on cranks reflects to the front and rear depending on the point in the pedal stroke.
Originally Posted by
Calsun
In the 1970's laws were passed that mandated reflectors attached to wheel spokes and to the back of pedals. They worked very well but adult cyclists found them to be no "cool" and removed them.
I think many users removed the wheel reflectors because they're just not effective for their intended purpose. From a distance viewed broadside, they look very impressive, but most side conflicts involve a cyclist in motion, where the bicycle is approaching the conflicting vehicle from one side and the wheel reflectors are completely out of the headlight beam pattern until just before the collision. The most effective method of conspicuity for side and turning conflicts is a visible headlamp on the bicycle, as the reflectors aren't generally in the beam pattern and an emitted beam that reaches the conflicting driver's eyes is needed.