HR0169 104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0169 LRB104 12617 MST 23285 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, Having your headlights on during the day makes your vehicle more noticeable to other drivers, especially in situations with low visibility in environments with fog, rain, or overcast weather, greatly reducing the chances of an accident; and

WHEREAS, Studies show that using daytime running lights or DRLs would reduce fatal multiparty daytime accidents by 15%, serious injury multiparty daytime accidents by 10%, and slight injury multiparty daytime accidents by 5%; and

WHEREAS, Studies have found that DRLs reduce daytime multiple-vehicle crashes, especially head-on and front-corner collisions where vehicle conspicuity is a concern and the magnitude of the reduction varies depending on the study and the type of crash; many studies have found a reduction of 5 to 10%; and

WHEREAS, Different statistical methodologies found that DRLs reduced opposite-direction fatal crashes and non-fatal opposite-direction and angle crashes by 5% each, a 12% reduction in crashes involving pedestrians and bicyclists, and a 23% reduction in opposite-direction crashes involving motorcyclists; and

WHEREAS, A key European study evaluated 25 studies on the safety effects of DRLs for cars and 16 studies for motorcycles and found that DRL use produced a 5 to 10% reduction in multiparty daytime crashes for both vehicle types; and

WHEREAS, DRLs do not offer a lot of road illumination, but instead, they provide the right lighting that allows pedestrians and cyclists to see your vehicle better; and

WHEREAS, High-beam lights cause glare that can distract other drivers on the road, especially on hazy days, and when there is reduced visibility due to bad weather condition, daytime lamps provide sufficient lighting to signal other motorists; since DRLs are ambient only, they are not too bright to be distracting, but they are not substitutes for fog lamps, which you should use during inclement weather; and

WHEREAS, Having DRLs on your vehicle is a benefit for both drivers and people not operating on the road; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE HUNDRED FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we urge the State of Illinois to promote the use of daytime running lights on automobiles wherever and whenever possible; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be delivered to the Illinois Department of Transportation and the Illinois Secretary of State.