Touring survey: ‘One in three drivers blinded by oncoming traffic’

According to a new survey by mobility organization Touring, more than one in three Belgian drivers (34%) are often blinded by oncoming traffic. A fifth of them say this causes them stress and 18% even avoid driving in the dark. On the other hand, it appears that one in five vehicles has some defect in the vehicle lighting or that the lights are not correctly adjusted, which can also cause glare.

According to Touring, the results are disturbing because the risk of an accident increases during moments of glare. For example, more than half of vehicle drivers indicate having difficulty assessing the area around the light source.

‘To see and be seen’

“It is vital to see and be seen,” Touring concludes. About 60% of accidents happen in darkness. Around 400,000 vehicles are rejected yearly during technical inspection due to a lack of low-beam headlights.

Other remarkable details from the survey:

• On average, 76% of vehicle drivers who are blinded by the lights of others find this intolerable to very annoying.
• 61% believe a system of automatic low-beam lights that work with sensors has improved road safety.
• Belgians are mainly dazzled by the high beams of other vehicles (77%). Naturally, this is less (27%) with regular dipped beam headlights.
• Striking: 17% say bicycle lights blind them.
• 26% say they are unsatisfied with the street lighting, although only 9% claim to be blinded by them.

Check your lights

Touring urges that the lights on highways and ring roads be switched on in rainy weather, in the event of an accident, and at traffic interchanges. Finally, the organization also calls on every car user to check the lighting regularly or have it done.

The Touring study was conducted in collaboration with the German mobility club ADAC. More than 1,000 (1,051, to be precise) Belgians, both members and non-members, participated in the survey.