Has hi-vis had its day?

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Davidc

Guru
Location
Somerset UK
I can't see the problem with everyone wearing hi viz & reflective clothes. If it helps drivers and riders see people its good. The problem is with the lo viz light absorbent clothing most people seem to wear day and night.

I choose to wear a hi viz (dayglo yellow) plus reflectives vest when I'm cycling or walking any distance, day or night, and I don't care what I look like, I just want to be seen.
 

BentMikey

Rider of Seolferwulf
Location
South London
I don't think much of hiviz, but I do think a lot of the visibility of my low racer recumbent which is many times more visible and noticeable than any upright bicycle, so perhaps am a bit of a hypocrite.
 
BentMikey said:
I don't think much of hiviz, but I do think a lot of the visibility of my low racer recumbent which is many times more visible and noticeable than any upright bicycle, so perhaps am a bit of a hypocrite.

I never guessed.;)
 

Arch

Married to Night Train
Location
Salford, UK
BentMikey said:
I don't think much of hiviz, but I do think a lot of the visibility of my low racer recumbent which is many times more visible and noticeable than any upright bicycle, so perhaps am a bit of a hypocrite.

I've gone one better - a recumbent trike in a fluoro orange paint job!

I think people see me coming before they've even left their houses...:evil:
 
Location
Midlands
Sam Kennedy said:
What's wrong with black Hi-Vis? :evil:
I heard they work well in the Arctic, why not here?

Very similar to the priciple behind the thinking of the project manager who insisted we wear full highway Hi Viz in a field of oilseed rape -apart from being almost invisible you get eaten by the little black bugs
 

garrilla

Senior Member
Location
Liverpool
I've often wondered if we'd get further colour-seperation with hi-viz as we did with overalls once upon a time.

I watched a 44acre site get demolished and then rebuilt as a sparkling shopping centre from my office over a period of about 2.5 years. Everyone was visible all the way across the site, so it has to be better thannot wearing it.

I feel safer in the daylight if I've got dayglo on or very bright red or yellow. And I like those Altura Vests someone posted with the dayglo yellow and orange panels, my dauighter has one, and I also have a hump rucksack cover is a similar style. I think the two colours together in broad patches appear to be very visible. I'd like a jacket like this, actually.
 

Ashtrayhead

Über Member
Location
Belvedere, Kent.
Alan Whicker said:
I know what you mean, but the ones I saw were in the road/commuting bits of On Yer Bike at London Bridge. Camo is also a popular pattern for motorcycle clothing.

It can't be any good then, if you saw them!

On which topic......We have instructions at work that hi-viz must be worn on-site at all times and that recently some people had been seen not wearing theirs and had to be told to put it on. I refrained from asking the obvious question 'If they were seen NOT wearing it, what would be the point of them putting it on?'

This reminds me of a thread I started recently when I mentioned that I saw a bloke wearing a camoufluage jacket and a hi-viz vest over the top .
 

pwh91

Veteran
Location
Bristol
BentMikey said:
I don't think much of hiviz, but I do think a lot of the visibility of my low racer recumbent which is many times more visible and noticeable than any upright bicycle, so perhaps am a bit of a hypocrite.

Good shout BM - basically we're all wanting the same thing, to get from A to B safely, and being "unusual" has its place in this. As far as hi-viz goes, the statistics are difficult to pick through since (as I believe BM has pointed out before) the biggest contributor is road positioning and enough experience not to get into risky situations.
 

GazK

Veteran
Location
Wiltshire
Norm said:
smiffy kinda intimates it but just to make it explicit, something I didn't realise until working in the rail industry a few years back is that there is an unofficial standard amongst construction companies that road workers wear yellow HV and rail workers wear orange.

I can't speak for the road construction sector, but I work in the rail industry and hold a certificate allowing me on the track. It is very much an official standard to wear orange hi-vis kit. Turn up on site with anything else and you will be chucked off. Thems the rules. I would quote the appropriate railway group standard number and clause but it's late and I can't be arsed ;)
 

garrilla

Senior Member
Location
Liverpool
On the building site I mentioned earlier, the banksmen wore red tabbards. I guess this was to distinuish them from all the other workers. If you're following a banksman, you want to see him and not have him confused with some other Johnny?
 

Norm

Guest
GazK said:
I can't speak for the road construction sector, but I work in the rail industry and hold a certificate allowing me on the track.
12 months ago, I had track cert from NR and LU or TfL or whatever the heck they are called today. That was before my first redundancy in the current recession. ;)
 
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