Car Culture was a Mistake Part 4: Blinded by the (Head)Light

How high's the grille mama?
5 feet high and rising...

As we enter the Long Period of Darkness, euphemistically referred to as "Daylight Savings Time", everyone who commutes during rush hour on the jam-packed Chicago expressways does so in pitch black darkness.

As vehicle heights grew and the grilles of vehicles got taller and broader to become a solid 5 foot wall, these modern day Dreadnoughts are not only a deadly danger to pedestrians and bicyclists but to other drivers as well as these behemoths headlights rose in relation to the front grille.

The consequence of which, headlights now most often shine directly into the eyes of oncoming drivers.

Interestingly, the current generation of Hyundai SUV's, the mammoth Palisade, the quirky Ute Santa Cruz, the stalwart Tucson have all lowered their primary bulb headlights from the top of the front grille/hood to the middle of the front of their vehicles while adding a various array of recessed LEDs.   

So, you might be able to deal with raised eye-level headlights, if the increase in vehicle size wasn't also accompanied by a revolution in headlight technology.  I previously wrote about the Chicago and Cook County wide replacement of the orange hued high-pressure sodium street lights with LED.

Everyone knows the story of how headlight technology in America was halted with the adoption of the sealed glass and steel circular parabola lamp in 1940.  This decision allowed for a one-size fits all standard across the Nation as vehicles began their steady increase in number.  A standard headlight allowed a driver across the country to get it replaced from coast-to-coast.  Change was slow, and while advancements in lighting, like plug-in halogen bulbs, projector bulbs, high-intensity discharge lights, and others are vastly superior, the increase in overall brightness has not been accompanied by increased safety.

Motorists continue to over-drive their headlights.  And opposing motorists need to shield their eyes from the blinding glare of on-coming traffic like Bono.