[revvharder]

Yesterday was returning from somewhere and on 93.5 Red FM an ad was broadcasted by Haryana Police which goes like this:

Roughly what i remember
(Two friends are talking to each other)

Person 1: Kyu dukhi lag raha hai bhai? (Brother why are you looking sad?)
Person 2: Yaar dhund ki vajah se gaadi mai nuksan ho gya (Bro my car got damaged while driving in fog)
Person 1: He then advises the use of fog lamps and hazard lights when driving in foggy conditions.
etc,etc,.
Haryana police dwara janhit mai jari (Issued in public interest by Haryana police)

The ad should rather clearly mention to use blinkers/hazard lights when parked on the side of the road and the use of low beams, front and back fog lamps while driving in fog for increased visibility.

[varunsangal]

Originally Posted by revvharder

The ad should rather clearly mention to use blinkers/hazard lights when parked on the side of the road and the use of low beams, front and back fog lamps while driving in fog for increased visibility

This is typical of people using their own interpretation of signals. Now even Haryana police is at it!

Use of hazard lights as a regular signal when driving through rain, fog, tunnels, dark etc is unfortunately becoming all too common.

In some cities have seen right/left indicators as indication to overtake as well!! Had a couple of near misses, before I had to learn to do a visual confirmation before turning.

Anyways where you turn is essentially a state secret.

[IshaanIan]

What retards hazard lights are so annoying and actually pose a greater danger since their constantly blinking will make it tough to distinguish size and distance of the vehicle. When will educated people who are qualified to discuss traffic and safety matters be in such posts in the police and transport divisions?

[NiXTriX2004]

While I understand the outrage, I also understand where the police are coming from. How many cars have rear fog lights? Very few. Until a law is passed to make it mandatory for all vehicles to be equipped with both front and rear fog lamps, the police will try to do what they can to reduce accidents. Some sort of indication is better than no indication.

[Reinhard]

Excellent. The last thing we needed - the traffic and policing authorities promoting the most dangerous and fundamentally wrong thing most Indian drivers follow in fog / rain.

On the other hand, I think they are also desperate to save lives & we have to understand their perspective too. This is the reason why the authorities MUST enforce mandatory rear fog lights near lower rear bumper on all cars. These are almost as necessary as ABS and airbags in our smoggy conditions now.

[comfortablynumb]

A couple of related discussions:


https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/stree...rd-lights.html (Yet Another Incorrect New Use for Hazard Lights)


https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/drive...ne-change.html

[Shreyans_Jain]

I believe the Haryana Police is trying to make the best out of what it has. There is no rule which makes rear fog lights mandatory. So it is better to be running blinkers in fog than nothing at all.

[Caesar]

The same was being recommended by Chandigarh Traffic Police on their Twitter account and endorsed by SSP Traffic. Even on pointing out the fallacy, they seem to have stood ground.
When the "creamiest" of layers, like an IPS with world class education and possibly foreign education tours under his or her belt, is endorsing this; I feel my frustration with the general populace was misplaced.

[abhishek46]

In some very heavy fog conditions in the hills, I have noticed many users using the Blinkers, in addition to the lamps.
Whether it's a right practice or not, may be debatable. However, I personally didn't find them to be distracting.
In those conditions, I have to admit that the blinkers were useful.

[iamahunter]

Again a case of rule-keepers unknown of the actual rule.

However if you see new generation Mercedes, they don't even come with slots for fog lights in the front.

What if a car doesn't have slots for fog-lights? What is then, a proper way to drive through fog?

Should one use blinkers, headlights, both or neither?

[Dieselritzer]

Good luck with that. Folks using parking lights during fog and then changing lanes without the folks around getting any clue as even after using the indicator, in majority cars the parking lights will continue to blink and thus it would cause more accidents as the guy would use the indicator and completely forget that the parking light blinkers are ON

[GTO]

Originally Posted by NiXTriX2004

How many cars have rear fog lights? Very few.

Originally Posted by abhishek46

However, I personally didn't find them to be distracting.

Bingo! Last time when I was in Mahabaleshwar, there was crazy fog! Like visibility of just 1.5 - 2 car lengths, and even that was poor. In these conditions, the blinkers were incredibly useful (everyone had them on, including me ).

I feel their usage is valid in dense fog. However, experts disagree with the same:

Originally Posted by SS-Traveller

CORRECT USE OF HAZARD LIGHTS IN FOG:

DO NOT use your hazard lights in reduced visibility conditions while driving. Use them only when your vehicle is stopped, regardless of the weather conditions. The purpose of these flashing lights is to warn other drivers about the existence of your vehicle as a hazard to others driving past it, OR to warn others of a hazard ahead that you can see, but which may not be visible to them.

Also read: Avoid using hazard lights during fog.

In the situation that you have a car that is not equipped with fog lamps (and you do not wish to spend the paltry sum required to fix fog lamps anytime in the future), but you are travelling on a fog-bound road, you can switch on your hazard lights, only until you are sure that a vehicle coming up behind you has noticed you and slowed down sufficiently.

Under no circumstance should you continue to use hazard lights while another car is continuously following you. This may lead to "moth-effect", especially at night, and your vehicle would be the worse off if the vehicle behind you just happens to be a truck with an inebriated driver at the wheel (inebriated drivers suffer from greater "moth effect").

Also read: 'The moth effect' endangers motorists.

In addition, if you incorrectly activate your hazard lights, you are handicapped in your ability to signal your intention to turn and / or make lane changes.

[Sheel]

Originally Posted by GTO

I feel their usage is valid in dense fog.

I feel, they are irritating and a nuisance, imagine having 2 cars ahead and having their hazards on.

I believe fog-lamps should be made mandatory and its usage [when not to use specifically] should be taught.

In fogs, I usually slow down if I can't overtake a vehicle with their hazards on.

[Hayek]

I think all cars should have front and rear fog lamps (and yes, two rear fog lamps, not one). Enough has been said about how dangerous it is to use hazard lights instead of fog lamps. Unfortunately, even educated folks keep misusing hazard lights because that has become the norm - and people used to a certain norm may not notice a normal fog lamp. It’s not easy to change such norms - and I guess this is not the biggest danger on Indian roads, so it will take a long time for change to come

[Vid6639]

Originally Posted by GTO

I feel their usage is valid in dense fog. However, experts disagree with the same:

Internationally hazard lights are to warn others that your car is posing as a hazard/broken down/stopped. That's what is understood abroad.

In India we are used to hazards being used in rain and fog and when people use them in fog we know it could be either of the 2. It's when foreign drivers not used to Indian habits see hazard lights on moving cars that give them a shock. For Indian drivers it's a given now.

This is also not something that can be changed now as it has propagated too deep. So you either follow same or let others follow it if you don't subscribe to it.