Could This Simple Design Change Make Cars Safer?

Do you know your car? You probably think that you do. But what if we asked you right now to tell us what color your turn signals were? There’s a good chance you wouldn’t know, but that seemingly minor detail plays a larger role than you may think, when it comes to safety.

What Color are The Brake Lights?

You probably do already know that most brake lights tend to either be amber/yellow, or reddish in color. But you may not have known that recent experiments are showing that the difference between these two colors, may have a big impact on car safety and the number of accidents a vehicle is likely to be involved in.

Recent studies show that amber colored brake signals reduce the likelihood of car accidents, by as much as 22%-25%, as compared to red turn signals. Researchers know this, because they compared similar vehicles whose turn signals had changed in color over the years as part of the manufacturer’s routine design refreshing cycle, which often will change the color of the turn signals.

Studies also looked at cars of different makes and models, which were otherwise very similar in size, engines, or safety features, but which had different color turn signals.

Yellow is Safer

Researchers can’t pinpoint why yellow or amber signals are safer—but they did note that other drivers tended to see and react quicker to turn signals that were amber in color. The reaction time by other drivers was as much as 20% quicker when the other drivers were faced with amber signals, as opposed to red ones.

Scientifically, amber lighting has a longer wavelength, and thus, is more visible through inclement weather. Yellow lights  also may just “stick out” more than red lights do.

Color is so important to reducing the number of accidents, it actually is more effective than adding another brake light onto cars. When the government required extra brake lights on cars in 1986, it did reduce the number of accidents—but not nearly as much as changing the color of the signals reduces accidents.

Other countries have caught on as well, and in some countries, the use of red turn signals is no longer allowed. That’s why the same car can have different color turn signals, depending on whether it is sold in the US or overseas.

Will There be a Change?

Manufacturers don’t seem to be in any rush to change the color of their turn signals; many do, but mostly for aesthetics, and for cost—red lights are cheaper to produce than yellow ones. T

There is a seemingly random amount of red and amber brake lights on the roads. Most manufacturers are concerned about what color looks better, than what color is more likely to reduce accidents, and there is no push by any legislature to mandate that turn signals be yellow or amber.

Were you injured in a car accident?  Schedule a consultation with our Tampa personal injury lawyers at Barbas, Nunez, Sanders, Butler & Hovsepian today for help after your accident.

Source:

crashstats.nhtsa.dot.gov/Api/Public/ViewPublication/811115