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Clocks go back, accidents go up

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I HAVE a real aversion to this moment in October: I’m talking about when the clocks go back.

Frankly it should be the other way so we get lighter evenings.

I spent Sunday going round changing all the clocks – and then jumping in the various family cars to do the same there. What a waste of time.

More to the point, these lighter mornings/darker evenings immediately leads to more accidents on the road.

According to the IAM in 2011: 

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  • The number of pedestrians killed or seriously injured in November was 14 per cent more than the monthly average.
  • The number of cyclist casualties was 5 per cent higher.
  • The rate of motorcycle casualties per vehicle mile was 28 per cent higher.

And yet we persist in this misguided time-shifting.

I know it’s a subject I’ve gone on about before – see my blog from 2008: Autumn afternoons before the clocks go back  

There’s more analysis I did in a special report: Daylight saving brings no cost saving.

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So you can see where I stand on the issue.

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Get your lights on before the light fades

In the meantime, to cut down on the potential for accidents with the clocks going back an hour, here are a few tips.

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  • Make sure your light setting is on ‘auto’ – most modern company cars have this setting – like my Audi A3 (pictured): a sensor turns the lights on automatically when daylight dims
  • If you don’t have an auto setting, put your lights on the moment it starts to darken
  • Allow more time for your journey: rushing in the dark, in the rain, is a sure-fire way to have an accident. Accept the inevitable. It’s going to take longer. Better to take longer and arrive home safely
  • Watch out for more vulnerable traffic users – pedestrians and cyclists (especially the latter if they are not helping themselves with additional visibility), and most importantly those on motor bikes
  • Make sure you can see properly: clean the inside of your windows – especially if the kids have been there with their mucky mitts
  • Be careful not to dazzle other road users by leaving your lights on full beam
  • Don’t use your rear fog lamp in the rain. It dazzles. Like it says on the button – it’s for fog

PS I did enjoy the extra hour in bed, though…

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