Navigating The Night

Your Essential Guide to Safe and Enjoyable Driving After Dark

The sun has dipped and you’ve got somewhere to be. That means driving in the dark, which for some, can be more nerve-wracking than a daytime drive. However, with the right knowledge and attitude, you can minimise the risks and enjoy the journey even in low-light conditions.

Understanding Your Vehicle's Lights for Safe Night Driving

If you want the right light for the right situation, you need to get to know the functions of each light on your car and when to use it.

Park lights, as the name suggests, are for illuminating your car while stationary.

If the light is low and you’re moving, you should use your regular (or ‘dipped-beam’) headlights. However, dipped beams don't light up poorly lit roads that well, which is where high beams come in with their dramatically improved visibility. But you can’t just use them indiscriminately: high beams, unlike dipped beams, aren't angled to avoid dazzling oncoming drivers, so you need to flick them off whenever you spot oncoming traffic.

If your car has ‘auto’ lighting, it will switch on your dipped beams in low light and you can just focus on high-beam use. If you've got auto high beams, you can forget about that too.

Your car might also have fog lights, which are for, what the name suggests, and only legally used in foggy or other hazardous conditions.

Preventing Fatigue: Tips for Staying Awake and Focused

One of the biggest concerns with night-time driving is the risk of feeling tired. Before you get behind the wheel, you need to assess whether you’re suitable (or going to be suitable) to drive.

If you’re heading out and likely to be tired for the return trip – or there’s a chance you'll be drinking – consider public transport or a rideshare service. If a long drive is on the cards, schedule plenty of stops and plan a realistic overnight stop rather than risk driving while drowsy. On the move, limit distractions by keeping your phone in your glovebox and the music down. Set the cabin to a temperature that's comfortable but not so cozy you'll want to fall asleep.

Reducing Risk: Why Slowing Down Matters at Night

Without your usual daytime visual cues to guide you, it can be easy to become disoriented driving in the dark. Picking out potential obstacles such as pedestrians, cyclists, and animals can be tough. The best way to mitigate the risk of unexpected scenarios is to just slow down – this will shorten your stopping distance and prevent any potential accidents.

Managing Glare: Techniques to Minimize Distraction

It’s not just the dark that makes driving at night difficult. The glare of street lights, traffic lights, and the headlights of oncoming cars can be even tougher on your eyes. There are, however, things you can do to minimise its effects.

First, try not to focus on one spot for too long – your eyes will adjust quicker to changing light if you’re constantly scanning. Don’t look directly into the headlights of oncoming cars, instead setting your vision to the lower left side of your lane. Also, the fog that builds up on the inside of your windscreen and other windows amplifies the effects of glare, so keep them clean. Finally, don’t forget to engage the ‘night’ function on your central rear-view mirror (another function that’s automated on some cars) to minimise the glare from the headlights of trailing cars.