Who uses a flashing headlight? Why?
 

This goes along to my earlier thread from week or so back regarding helmet mounted lights vs. handlebar mounted lights. I noticed a few here use a flash pattern lamp along with thier normal headlamp.

My question is, where does this help? Unless you are riding against traffic (which you shouldn't be), what benefits would this have?

I can see this function helping at cross-roads. Any where else?

Thanks for the replies! I am curious about this.

I use a flashing light only. However, I ride all city streets with decent lighting to see my way. The flashing light is just extra help to get cars to notice me when I am white lining through traffic, or waiting in the left turn lane in the intersection. Basically its my extra visibility for what i hope is added safety. I also live on a 2 way city street with no markings, and even though my time on that particular street is low, it sure is nice to really grab the attention of cars that are riding straight at me.

I never quite understood the flashing lights. Just having an adequate light will do.

yeah, you'd think. But since driver still tend to pull out on me, either my light is still not bright enough, or the driver isn't.

Just based on my own experiences while driving, I tend to notice the flashing lights faster than the steady so I'll run the flash mode during the day. At night it's steady as I really don't want an epileptic seizure from the constant strobe! :)

Flashing is much more attention-getting day or night. Unless you are riding on a street with zero cross streets, there will be people ahead of you that can cause you problems.

1st - the human eye is drawn to movement. AFAIK, a strobe is classified as "movement" by our brains. We can't help but look at it (if only momentarily) if we're paying any attention at all.

2nd - How many times have you seen people behind the wheel do incredibly stupid things? Sure, you expect that drivers will stay on their sides of the road, but I certainly don't want to bet my life on that expectation.

3rd (as already mentioned), I feel a little exposed when in that left turn lane.

4th - Couldn't hurt any! (shrug)

I only use a flashing light. Im also in a well lit city so the light doesnt help me see my way as much as it does alert others of my presence.

People do it because they think they are more visible. I see people using flashing lights at night and think they would be better off with the light on steady. I don't think any safety benefits offset the annoyance it causes me, so I don't run my lights on flashing. People seem to think I'm in a motor vehicle most of the time, so I don't think the brightness of my lights is lacking in any way.

I use flashing lights only in daylight under adverse conditions - fog, rain, etc. At night I need the light to see by so it's constant. In normal daylight conditions I run a blinking tail but no headlight at all since there are few pull-out hazards on my route and I don't ride very fast anyway.

I feel about 39% safer using the flashing light in conditions that are rainy, foggy, or low-light. I use a solid light mode when it is dark out and I need to see the potholes.

BTW, in many places flashing lights are illegal to use except for emergency vehicles. That's true here in Minneapolis, but I've never heard of anyone getting a ticket or a warning because of their flashing front or rear lights.

I notice that some moving or stationary things have flashing lights,
I guess so that they can be noticed more easily than if they just had
lights that were on. Ambulances, radio towers, police motorcycles,
roadway construction sites, aircraft, car turn signals, etc.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gGpBHbEYqeo

I use a flashing headlight day and night. I also have another headlight in steady mode at night to light up the road. I notice drivers and pedestrians notice me more with the flashing headlight on. Cars making a left turn or those waiting at intersections usually let me by without much hesitation.

Well, IME, I never really noticed any difference in motorists flashing or consistent. Only noticeable difference is when I have one that is bright enough.

I frequently have my headlight in flash mode. As others have noted, this tends to be more noticed against the usual street backdrop of steady lights. Someone waiting at a cross street or driveway (or planning to turn left into one) might otherwise think my rather dim light (compared to car headlights) is from a much more distant car or motorcycle and pull out into my path. The flashing mode is also more conserving of battery power.

When I get off the road onto MUPs I switch to the constant mode for better illumination of the path and to avoid annoying pedestrians with the flash pattern.

I use a steady to help drivers with their depth perception (I know that I have a hard time telling how far away a bicyclist is with flasher only) and a flasher to get attention. I was convinced of a flasher when I saw one over a mile away on a 6 lane road. A auto pulling out from sidestreet should see it fine.

Also, helmet steady can be moved towards an auto pulling out if need be.

BTW - tests on water resues have shown that flashers get attention, but once close rescuers have a hard time finding the person to be rescued and need a steady light to do so.

I've tried the flashing light mode, if for no other reason than it lasts longer between charges, but the truth is, it just annoys the heck out of me. If I feel that visibility is so questionable that my 500 lumen headlight still isn't safe, I'll just choose a better route. (Of course, riding in a highly urbanized area, other routes are always available....)

One intersection I frequently make left turns at doesn't trigger with just a bicycle, so when I approach it at night I put my light on flash and it seems to let the sensor know that I'm there.

good answer....

I'm surprised that is the case since the bike share bikes used in Minneapolis have flashing lights.

I use the flashing mode on my headlight during the day to dusk time.
Only on certain routes though - when I really want to be noticed because of conditions/speed.

It works. I'm sure it annoys oncoming drivers a bit, but they notice me quickly around some of those curves, and that's all I really care about - that they see me.

I run my light in flash during the day because I ride in urban environments where I'm constantly transitioning between shadow and light. Even with light colored cothing, a bicycle is easily lost in the shadow of a tree or building.

During the summers, it gets very foggy here in the morning so I am starting to run my steady light also during the morning commute. It gets bad enough here that visibility is only about 30m sometimes.

Besides this, I use rechargeable batteries. The cost of the lights and batteries are sunk. The ongoing cost for electricity to run the lights is something like 1/4th of one cent per week for the amount I use my light. Since there is almost no cost and no harm in running the lights during the day, why the heck not. The batteries will last maybe 10-12 days in the back light and around 30 days in the front and I recharge every Sunday so my batteries have plenty of capacity in reserve unless my riding goes up a lot.

My 18650 light, though, only has about 2 hours run time so I have to charge that maybe every other day if I use it daily.

After a close call with a motorist who looked directly at me and my MiNewt 600 (on medium) and still didn't see me, I went to the parts bin and pulled out my old MagicShine. Now I run the MS on SOS flash and keep the MiNEwt on medium. I can definitely see a difference in how cars notice and react to me. My next move is to mount my Blaze 2W on my helmet to shine at cars approaching from the side streets. I haven't decided if its going to be on hi or superflash.

I use a flashing light front and rear and also a steady on the front as round here flashing means bicycle so drivers are more likely to pay attention.

Also before the law changed it was illegal to have a flashing light without a steady one as well.

Dawn and dusk, my neighboorhood is subject to lots of sun glare, flashing mode seems to help and as an auto driver I've noticed that the flashers get my attention more easily. Sure can't hurt.