Cyclists' responsibility for their own safety *warning* infractions given liberally for trolling etc

you ask if there is evidence about bright cars and accidents; but it's not me making that claim, per se. what i was trying to call out was the hypocrisy of some of the people here who insist on the importance of cyclists dressing brightly, but react with eye-rolling scorn when someone asks 'if that is the case for cyclists, then is it not also the case for cars?'

i have a number of unscientific opinions on lights, and since you didn't ask, here are some:

i use two lights; one steady and one flashing, on both front and rear. for several reasons. one obvious one is redundancy; but the reason i have one steady and one flashing is that i once read somewhere that a steady light is easier for road users to judge distance with; but a flashing light will more easily grab their attention. worst case scenario for visibility is a dark wet night, often when approaching cars from behind (as i often found myself undertaking heavy traffic on the left). a steady light could easily be lost in wing mirror spattered with rain (compared to an oncoming cyclist, more likely to be seen through a windscreen with wipers running, visible in the car headlamps). in the side mirror scenario, there could be multiple points of light (e.g. house lights or streetlights) bouncing off multiple drops of water on the wing mirror; but a flashing light would be far less easily lost or misread in that context. and a hi-vis is often of little use if you're worried about someone getting impatient and swinging their car across your path, without indicating.

however, the biggest issue for most cyclists here (and the fact that most of the self-declared cyclists here would often firmly count themselves as cyclists means we're not exactly a clean slice through the demographic) is simply (some!) motorists not looking. i have on two occasions, managed to cycle up to the side of a car pulling out on a side street, and the first the motorist knew of my presence was me knocking on their window. and on one of those occasions, it was the first time i'd tried out hi-vis leggings which made me look like a clown.

also; as there has been multiple mentions of the cycling forum, it's worth pointing out that cycling without lights at night there is *not* something which is popular on the forum. there have been plenty of threads about people asking about effective lights, and plenty of willing and helpful opinions regarding longevity brightness, and general use. lights are taken seriously there.

finally:

also, it's just an anecdote, but it's a funny one. a chap i know, a garda, went out for a spin, about five or six years ago. his wife thought he looked so stupid she made him pose for a photo before he left the house; he was wearing a hi-vis jacket, a hi vis helmet, hi vis gloves , hi vis leggings and hi vis overshoes.

he didn't even make it 2km from the house; he was knocked down on a roundabout. by a motorist who didn't see him.