All bikes should be fitted with lights!

[MadoneRider1991]

I can't see that sticking a five quid set of LED lights onto a two grand Trek is going to be a financial incentive for folk to take up a different hobby. But perhaps there could be an exception for bikes which are clearly intended for racing, in the same way that F1 cars aren't fitted with lights.

i think its a good idea on hybrids but not road bikes,

thinking about it though you would find it hard to fit a rear light to my madone because of its aero seat post

 

[Gareth]

what about all us racers who buy an expensive bike to be light and we never use them at night, what would be the point of putting lights on them then??

we spend alot of money making out bikes as light as possible just to have all of it wasted because lights have to be put on our bikes

"even lightweight bikes are required to be fitted with lights (battery powered lights allowed) except when racing"

 

[MadoneRider1991]

"even lightweight bikes are required to be fitted with lights (battery powered lights allowed) except when racing"

dude ermmmm try and fit a rear light to an aero seatpost

 

[GrasB]

Lets face it we're picking at straws here, if you're buying a nice lightweight race bike you're almost certainly going to have a training bike & possibly other bikes, so why not pull the lights off your race bike & use them on that one (you now know you're road legal in terms of lighting regardless of what other lights you have on the bike). Are you trying to tell me there's no way you're going to be riding any bike during light-up hours, because I don't really believe that.

As for aero tubing etc, if there's a will there's a way. Pieces of rubber cut to shape should allow you to mount anything to the front & back of your bike if required.

 

[Davidc]

I think a lot of people have missed the point.

The German rules are as close to sense as anyone will ever get.
The vast majority of bikes are for transport or general recreation. They have to have lighting, and it has to come from a dynamo.

those bkes which are specialist can have lightweight battery lights.

When racing the ligts can come off.

So: 99.999% of bikes will have dynamo lighting helping their riders avoid being killed or injured because they havent been seen.

0.00089% same applies but it's battery lights

0.0001% are racing

0.00001% are flattened - they forgot to put new batteries in.

 

[MadoneRider1991]

Lets face it we're picking at straws here, if you're buying a nice lightweight race bike you're almost certainly going to have a training bike & possibly other bikes, so why not pull the lights off your race bike & use them on that one (you now know you're road legal in terms of lighting regardless of what other lights you have on the bike). Are you trying to tell me there's no way you're going to be riding any bike during light-up hours, because I don't really believe that.

As for aero tubing etc, if there's a will there's a way. Pieces of rubber cut to shape should allow you to mount anything to the front & back of your bike if required.

1. i have never riden my race bike in low light levels because surprisingly races are held when theres light

2. im assuming that the fitting wouldnt be alloud to be "home made" by a bike shop due to safety reasons

 

[Gareth]

dude ermmmm try and fit a rear light to an aero seatpost

"One is required, to show a red light, positioned centrally or offside, between 350mm and 1500mm from the ground, at or near the rear, aligned towards and visible from behind."





So that also includes the frame's off-side seat stay.

 

[GrasB]

1. i have never riden my race bike in low light levels because surprisingly races are held when theres light

2. im assuming that the fitting wouldnt be alloud to be "home made" by a bike shop due to safety reasons

Unless we invent a whole new suite of laws Gareth answered this one for me:

"One is required, to show a red light, positioned centrally or offside, between 350mm and 1500mm from the ground, at or near the rear, aligned towards and visible from behind."

I don't remember anything being said about HOW the light is mounted to the bike only that it is!

 

[Young Un]

I'm sorry, but NOO!

 

[Panter]

Surely tiny LED lights could be intergrated into the frame though? Could look very nice

 

[MadoneRider1991]

Surely tiny LED lights could be intergrated into the frame though? Could look very nice

ermmmmmm i dont want lights in my nice light carbon frame!!

 

[Dan B]

We want to be viewd as "proper traffic" but you can't buy a road car without headlights!

"What do you mean 'we', paleface?"

We are already proper traffic, and we've been proper traffic (along with horses, carriages and foot passengers) since long before the motorcar came along and tried to recast the road use agenda on terms advantageous purely for them. If you can make the case for compulsory cycle lighting on actual safety or social grounds then fair enough, but arguing on the basis "cars do X so why don't we?" - for any value of X - is just falling into the car supremacists trap

 

[Panter]

"What do you mean 'we', paleface?"

We are already proper traffic, and we've been proper traffic (along with horses, carriages and foot passengers) since long before the motorcar came along and tried to recast the road use agenda on terms advantageous purely for them. If you can make the case for compulsory cycle lighting on actual safety or social grounds then fair enough, but arguing on the basis "cars do X so why don't we?" - for any value of X - is just falling into the car supremacists trap

Just seems a bit unfair.
The poor old motorist has to have them, why shouldn't we?







I see what you'e saying but I can't see a downside to making bicycle lighting mandatory.
Ok, there's the policing issue but that shouldn't be grounds for not doing something in my book.

 

[Panter]

"What do you mean 'we', paleface?"

That deserved a special mention

 

[ufkacbln]

I don't want a dynamo as it is inadequate.... I now have to spend another wadge of cash on a new wheel for my brand new bike.

As for frame fitting - where?
Can I still use a bar bag as it obscures the front light or a saddlebag as it obscures the rear?
Are the panniers excluded if it is rear frame mounted?