Why Are LED Lights So Bright?
Dear Retina Burners,
Driving down the Beltline at night these days makes me want to pull a Carrie Underwood and take a Louisville Slugger to the headlights of oncoming traffic.
What used to be a peaceful endeavor now feels like a survival challenge. If you drive after dark, you’ve likely noticed that shit has gotten a whole lot worse over the last few years.
It feels like everyone drives with their high beams on—but the LEDs are the culprit. They’re just SO much brighter!
People say the South is slow to change, but I refuse to let my eyes be burned out of their sockets in the name of innovation. These newfangled lights are out of control and I’m plum tired of it.
If you have LED headlights, it’s not your fault—but your car is blinding the rest of us. Manufacturers have been taking advantage of outdated regulations, and now we’re stuck staring at headlights 4 times brighter than they were 20 years ago.
My momma used to yell at my brother and me for turning on the car’s interior lights at night to look for a dropped Bojangles fry or lost toy. She said we’d get pulled over by the State Trooper because the glare would distract her from driving and get us in an accident. If the glare from that little overhead light is dangerous, these new LED headlights are a matter of national security.
With all the construction and new diamond interchanges on 440, the last thing any of us needs is to be temporarily blinded whenever a car is driving toward us. If bright headlights have ever pissed you off, please take two minutes out of your day to call Rep. Deborah Ross at 202.225.3032 and ask her to cosponsor the LIGHT Safety Act so we can see clearly on our roads again.
—Blinded by the Light
