Reflector 2 crashes
The Safety Benefits of Wet Retroreflective Pavement MarkingsĪs road planners, traffic safety experts, and transportation agencies became increasingly aware that a disproportionate number of crashes occur in rainy nighttime conditions, they sought to understand why.
![reflector 2 crashes reflector 2 crashes](http://tonos.ru/images/articles/moonhoax/reflector.jpg)
Different optics are better for returning light under different conditions-it is not possible for a single bead to be optimized for both dry and wet conditions. As a result, light hitting a wet pavement marking tends to reflect back in a much broader, weaker cone, meaning that much less light returns from a vehicle’s headlights to the driver’s eyes-significantly reducing the visibility of the pavement marking. This is sufficient in normal, dry nighttime conditions. Most standard retroreflective pavement markings contain optics with a 1.5 RI.
REFLECTOR 2 CRASHES DRIVER
The amount of light that is reflected back to the driver depends on a few different factors, including the refractive index (RI) of the optics and the air surrounding the optics.
![reflector 2 crashes reflector 2 crashes](https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/7EMAAOSww9BgGGMp/s-l225.jpg)
![reflector 2 crashes reflector 2 crashes](https://i.ibb.co/W31LgK9/dim17-2.jpg)
To increase the visibility of pavement markings and improve road safety, engineers in the industry have worked to advance pavement marking technology over the years, from simple painted white lines to the highly visible retroreflective pavement markings we often see on roads today. Road planners have recognized the importance of clear, consistent lane guidance for a long time. Crash data provided by MnDOT Office of Traffic Engineering. To understand why this happens, let’s explore the science behind what makes pavement markings visible in the first place. That’s a pretty unnerving situation to end up in,” said Ethan Peterson, Pavement Marking and Crashworthy Engineer at the Minnesota DOT (MnDOT).
REFLECTOR 2 CRASHES LICENSE
“Most anybody with a driver’s license has driven at night through a rainstorm and has likely lost track of the pavement markings. In wet nighttime conditions, standard pavement markings can become nearly invisible.
REFLECTOR 2 CRASHES DRIVERS
The biggest challenge for drivers in wet nighttime conditions may be seeing the pavement markings that provide lane guidance and are essential for safe driving.
![reflector 2 crashes reflector 2 crashes](https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/dckAAOSw33tfCZUh/s-l300.jpg)
On top of all this, water on the road tends to reduce traction and create slippery conditions. Rain further impedes visibility by reducing the clarity of windshields and increasing glare from the headlights of oncoming vehicles. A vehicle traveling at 60 mph needs about 200 ft to stop, and standard low-beam headlights only reach 160 to 250 ft in front of a vehicle, making it difficult for drivers to see objects in the road in time to react. One study suggests that, at night, drivers can only see about 5% of what they see in the daylight (3). There are a number of factors that make it challenging to drive in wet nighttime conditions. “Wet nighttime conditions present a dangerous, complicated time for driving,” said Adam Pike, Principal Investigator for the Texas A&M Transportation Institute (TTI). Adding rain to the mix can increase crashes by as much as 57% (2). In fact, 49% of fatal traffic crashes occur at night, even though we only do around 25% of our driving during nighttime hours (1). Numerous studies show that rainy nighttime conditions pose a considerable danger to motorists.