[swiftdiesel]

Night driving for me any day. I find the perception of distance to be lesser compared to day driving. Moreover I'm able to get in and out of the city in no time with no local traffic. I usually begin the journey between 1 am to 3 am and I time myself to return back into the city at the same time.

Also cheekily enough I love to give company to intercity buses and trucks!

[sameerg001]

If the road i am going on, is 4 lane, With divider in between for most of the part, Night driving any day over day driving.

But, If the road is single 2 laned for most of the part, I'll prefer day driving anyday

The only benefit of night driving is that you don't face traffic every now and then, But downside is that, lots of heavy traffic at night, Plus if its single laned, High beams from opposite sides, Became a big issue.

Cheers,
Sameer

[asr245]

Just for safety and avoiding the high beam nuisance - day driving. For any kind of trip more than 100 kms, I try to be on the road by 5am. Longer than 300kms, hit the road by 4am.

However, on mountain roads, night driving is a bit easier.

[airguitar]

If familiar roads, and if I'm well rested, I prefer night drives. Might stop over for power naps on the highway side or at restaurants. Preferred because of less traffic. The average speed might still be slower than average day time speed, but it's less stressful for me.

[carboy]

Day Driving for me all the time. Especially outside the city - I have done Bombay-Pune like 100s of times, but only once in the night - and it was one of the most stressful Bombay Pune drive for me. Even in city driving, I prefer day - but mostly one doesn't have a choice there.

My most stressful journey ever was from RenoTahoe Airport to a hotel which was around 45 minutes drive on a mountainous road. My flight was supposed to reach reno in early afternoon. I missed the flight and caught the next flight and reached Reno after darkness had set it. It was raining lightly and there was melting snow. Was nightmare of a drive in the night. Very luckily there was a very steady driver in the car ahead of mine. I just followed him through the journey without looking left or right & that soothed my nerves a lot.

[sumathindra]

Well it all depends on where you are driving. In Bangalore I usually prefer driving during the day. On my numerous drives between Bangalore and Mysore a few times I have driven during the night and it was actually good however since I know the roads it was an advantage.

The saying goes "do not swim the waters you do not know" is very much applicable while driving at nights on new and unknown roads.

Last year I drove from SFO airport to Livermore, a good 50 miles and was able to make it under an hour! That was one of the best drives at night for me...

[enragz]

Actually early morning drives are the best. Just around dawn and thereabouts. Less traffic and good visibility. But that gives one a very short window.

Personally for me driving after 11 in the night works best. It is less stressful.

The preconditions for that are, that one should be properly rested and not sleepy. Plus the road conditions should be good. It is difficult to spot potholes or navigate a bad road at night. Lastly the route you intend to take should be safe and not be completely lonely.

Maintain your pace depending upon the visibility you have. Many vehicles reciprocate when you use your dipper. A good practice is not to stare directly into the lights of an oncoming vehicle (on high beam). Look straight ahead in your lane and stick to your lane. This should work well.

[acatgain]

The Best driving window for me is the hours from 10 PM till 7 AM as the traffic will be less. But The concentration levels should be at peak as in highways you can't expect the road to be well lit and you can get surprises if the road is not well known. I use the help of the gps maps to give me a hint about the shape of the road to expect while driving through the twisty roads in Kerala.

I also enjoy day driving as it makes us enjoy the nature a lot. The best window to drive during day time is 11 AM till 3PM. If i do a day drive i make sure that i cover the max distance during this period and always try to take my lunch break either before or after this window.

[pganapathy]

An ideal time to drive is after 11 pm and up till 6 am because that is when traffic is at it's least and you now have cooler air (better engine performance so better power and mileage).

However, there are obviously problems with it. Vision is reduced so unless the danger on the road has reflectors or lights it is very difficult to see. Unless you are a nocturnal person or are very well rested, you risk falling asleep at the wheel. People driving with their main beam from the other side can really blind you and you may have an accident because you cannot see the road, hazards etc.

All said and done I prefer driving at night if possible as I find it more peaceful. Ideally I would like to leave in the early morning around 3 am or so.

[ontheroad]

Night drive if I know the road and traffic pattern, else it is day drive. Ex I usually do Thrissur- Kollam drive. Though the distance is only about 220kms home to home, during day it takes >5.5 hours but at night (starting 7pm) I cover the same distance in 4.5 hours.

[audioholic]

I or my dad prefer
Day driving - IF

• We travel alone, or
• The route is new, not traveled before
• It is a ghat section or a risky route
• The traffic conditions inside the city is favourable(this is because if the traffic is bad, you would have lost the interest in driving by the time you hit the highway, and this adds to fatigue)
• And such conditions.

Night Driving when -

• Route is familiar
• Car has a good set of lights(my SX4 )
• We are not sleep deprived
• When travelling in convoys(we are joined by relatives on family trips, as that is very advantageous)
• When the destination demands a lot of travel time

Basically, a reliable car, and a driver who does not sleep easily and is determined to drive and good knowledge of the route always favors a night drive. However, some people tend to feel drowsy as soon as they eat something or when the surroundings are calm. A good example is one of my uncle. One dosa after a night full of sleep made him drowsy as soon as he started driving the next morning! So I dont think night driving is suitable for such persons. The calm and cold surroundings will easily put them to sleep.

[raj.singh]

I thought I liked night driving; but my recent trips at night have changed my mind. Travelling on the NH 8 (Baroda to Surat) at night is a nightmare. Glaring high beams and no it doesn't stop here fog lamps (F&R) on a clear evening/night .

It gets better when there are hedges on the median but otherwise I don't want to travel at night on the NH 8. I have travelled in the day light and it's a beautiful stretch and one just cruises smoothly on the newly paved highway.

I have also made an interesting observation, mostly car owners are the ones who don't have any idea of using their headlights. I mean truck drivers never use their high beams especially when they are passing any vehicle on the opposite lane. But cars, they will tailgate you with their glaring high beams and it's a double whammy as one is already blinded by on coming cars.

[Floating Axle]

Originally Posted by raj.singh

But cars, they will tailgate you with their glaring high beams and it's a double whammy as one is already blinded by on coming cars.

This is really pain @ night driving. Either they don't realise or they are not bothered.

[simplyself]

Night driving is preferable as it is less distracting.

It is a lot better to have for company professional drivers ( say, truckers) than people who are hell bent on showing off their newly acquired toys.

Almost no hurdles like two-wheelers, three - wheelers, tractors and the like, no pedestrian traffic and the like.

[simplyself]

Originally Posted by raj.singh

I have also made an interesting observation, mostly car owners are the ones who don't have any idea of using their headlights. I mean truck drivers never use their high beams especially when they are passing any vehicle on the opposite lane. But cars, they will tailgate you with their glaring high beams and it's a double whammy as one is already blinded by on coming cars.

True.

Majority of the tail gaters do not realize it. Now it has become less of a concern as cars come equipped with anti glare RVMs.

As for the glare of head lights of oncoming vehicles, there is a way to reduce the effect - one does look into the headlights involuntarily, which amplifies the effect; it is better to focus on the point where one's left head light focusses, or simply, to the left side of the road. It does help a lot.