Vehicle Light Check Recommended with Holiday Travel, Less Daylight

Tips for Safer Night Driving

ROANOKE, Va., Oct. 28 -- Shorter days, the end of Daylight Saving Time and holiday travel add up to more time spent driving in the dark, and increase the importance of having properly functioning vehicle lights to prevent accidents.

In addition to illuminating a driver's field of vision, vehicle lights help prevent accidents by signaling a driver's intentions to other motorists, according to Bryan Gregory, consumer education director at Advance Auto Parts.

"Most automotive lights are simply bulbs, smaller but similar to the ones found in the home," Gregory says. "As such, they're easy to replace after they burn out or are damaged by road debris."

Conduct a quick walk around the vehicle. Turn on all the lights, test the turn signals, the brake lights and the hazard lights. If any of the lights aren't working, replace the bulb. If after replacing the bulb, the light still doesn't work, check the fuse panel for burned out fuses. For passenger safety, make sure that the interior lamps illuminate and don't forget any under-hood bulbs, as well as the trunk lamp and glove box bulb.

  Here are some more ways to prepare for safe driving at night.

  Safety Tips

  *     Make sure that all lights are clean and that headlights are aimed
        properly.

  *    Use extra vigilance at night because pedestrian deaths are highest
        between the hours of 9 p.m. and 6 a.m., and more than half of all
        motor vehicle deaths involving teenagers occur between those hours.

  *    Consider replacing standard headlights with street legal, high
        intensity discharge (HID) headlights or halogen lights that increase
        visibility significantly.

  *    Turn on headlights at dusk.  Even if they don't increase your field
        of vision at the time, other drivers will be able to see you better.

  *    Use high beams whenever possible to increase sight distance.
        However, always use low beams when encountering traffic to avoid
        blinding other drivers.

  *    Watch the right edge of the lane you're traveling in to minimize
        blindness from oncoming headlights.

  *    Realize that darkness impairs vision, thereby increasing reaction
        times and making other vehicles' speeds harder to judge.  Drive
        slower and leave more space between your vehicle and traffic.  Ask
        passengers to serve as additional sets of eyes to look for curves,
        hills, dips and deer.

  *    If you experience car trouble, pull as far off the road as is safely
        possible.  Always use hazard lights to warn other traffic.  If you
        drive at night often, consider carrying orange reflective triangles
        or road flares.  Also, contemplate adding auxiliary driving lights,
        such as fog lights, to your vehicle.

  *    Drunk driving increases at night, particularly on weekends.  Drive
        even more defensively during these times, avoiding vehicles that are
        being driven erratically.

Advance Auto Parts, Inc. is based in Roanoke, Va., and is the second largest auto parts chain in the nation. With 2,500 stores in 38 states, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, the Company serves both the do-it-yourself and professional installer markets. Additional night driving tips, information about the Company, employment opportunities, services, as well as on-line purchase of parts and accessories can be found on the Company's web site at www.advanceautoparts.com.