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Bicycle Pulsing/Flashing Lights - Legal on a Motorcycle?

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iMotoPilot

iMotoPilot

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Location
San Antonio, TX
First Name
Jorge
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Peña
I understand that modulating head lights are legal to use in our great state of Texas but what about those intense bicycle flashing lights? (Front & Rear?)
 
brake light modulators are legal and some cars are now coming from the factory with a modulator on the third brake light.

the admore lighting mini light bar on the back of my ZRX pulses three or four times before going steady.

I have been rear ended with it so flashing brake lights don't necessarily work.
 
a lone bright amber LED tied to brake lights would work better as standard red is lost in the sea of red lights in traffic.

it is the different color that snaps people awake and amber is the only legal color.
 
I doubt it's legal. You cannot add extra lights that flash. It make you look like an emergency vehicle or a cop.
 
Sec. 547.305(c) RESTRICTIONS ON USE OF LIGHTS.

It says you cannot use "flashing light" unless it is "a running lamp, headlamp, taillamp, backup lamp, or turn signal lamp that is used as authorized by law."

A modulating bicycle light is not any of those lights, so it's not allowed.
IMO a modulating headlight is not used as "authorized by law".
IMO a constantly flashing brake light is not used as "authorized by law."

But that's just my 2c. Lets hear it from law enforcement.
 
I would rather get a ticket for lights that saved me from harm rather than have similar lamps light the way to my burial plot. Just my .02, YMMV
 
Just a thought. Rather than mounting it on the bike, attach it to the back of your helmet. It will be higher and if you use the type that mount on most bicycles and riders they are not as bright as most brake lights. Or get some highly reflective stickers for the helmet.
 
A wily person could assert such a light is allowed under this section:

Sec. 547.331. HAZARD LAMPS PERMITTED. (a) A vehicle may be equipped with lamps to warn other vehicle operators of a vehicular traffic hazard that requires unusual care in approaching, overtaking, or passing.

(b) The lamps shall be:

(1) mounted at the same level and spaced as widely apart as practicable on the front and on the rear of the vehicle; and

(2) visible at a distance of at least 500 feet in normal sunlight.

(c) The lamps shall display simultaneously flashing lights that emit:

(1) a white or amber light, or a color between white and amber, if the lamp is mounted on the front of the vehicle; or

(2) a red or amber light, or a color between red and amber, if the lamp is mounted on the rear of the vehicle.
Click to expand...
 
E.Marquez said:
http://www.statutes.legis.state.tx.us/Docs/TN/htm/TN.547.htm

Can you point out the section and paragraph you found that in :giveup:
Click to expand...

There's also this:

Federal law supersedes all state laws and makes motorcycle headlight modulators legal in all 50 states. FMVSS 108 (Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards) (49 CFR Part 571.108 S7.9.4) allows motorcycle headlight modulation systems all 50 states provided they comply with the standards set forth in this section.

Title 49 USC 30103 (b1) (US Codes) prohibits any state from forbidding a system that conforms to FMVSS 108 (see copy below). Here is a web page with all of Part 571 and all of the subsections; they've now broken it up by section to make it easier to read. The Legal Information Institute at Cornell University also has a nice website where you can read the various sections of the entire Title 49 USC.

Code of Federal Regulations
Title 49, Volume 5, Parts 400 to 999
Revised as of October 1, 2000
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access [CITE: 49CFR571.108] [Page 236-307]
TITLE 49 TRANSPORTATION
CHAPTER V NATIONAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
PART 571 FEDERAL MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARDS

Subpart B--Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards
Sec. 571.108 Standard No. 108;

Lamps, reflective devices, and associated equipment.

S7.9.4 Motorcycle headlamp modulation system.

S7.9.4.1 A headlamp on a motorcycle may be wired to modulate either the upper beam or the lower beam from its maximum intensity to a lesser intensity, provided that:

(a) The rate of modulation shall be 240 <plus-minus> 40 cycles per minute.

(b) The headlamp shall be operated at maximum power for 50 to 70 percent of each cycle.

(c) The lowest intensity at any test point shall be not less than 17 percent of the maximum intensity measured at the same point.

(d) The modulator switch shall be wired in the power lead of the beam filament being modulated and not in the ground side of the circuit.

(e) Means shall be provided so that both the lower beam and upper beam remain operable in the event of a modulator failure.

(f) The system shall include a sensor mounted with the axis of its sensing element perpendicular to a horizontal plane. Headlamp modulation shall cease whenever the level of light emitted by a tungsten filament light operating at 3000 deg. Kelvin is either less than 270 lux (25 foot-candles) of direct light for upward pointing sensors or less than 60 lux (5.6 foot-candles) of reflected light for downward pointing sensors. The light is measured by a silicon cell type light meter that is located at the sensor and pointing in the same direction as the sensor. A Kodak Gray Card (Kodak R-27) is placed at ground level to simulate the road surface in testing downward pointing sensors.

(g) When tested in accordance with the test profile shown in Figure 9, the voltage drop across the modulator when the lamp is on at all test conditions for 12 volt systems and 6 volt systems shall not be greater than .45 volt. The modulator shall meet all the provisions of the standard after completion of the test profile shown in Figure 9.

(h) Means shall be provided so that both the lower and upper beam function at design voltage when the headlamp control switch is in either the lower or upper beam position when the modulator is off.

S7.9.4.2(a) Each motorcycle headlamp modulator not intended as original equipment, or its container, shall be labeled with the maximum wattage, and the minimum wattage appropriate for its use. Additionally, each such modulator shall comply with S7.9.4.1 (a) through (g) when connected to a headlamp of the maximum rated power and a headlamp of the minimum rated power, and shall provide means so that the modulated beam functions at design voltage when the modulator is off.

(b) Instructions, with a diagram, shall be provided for mounting the light sensor including location on the motorcycle, distance above the road surface, and orientation with respect to the light.

I have Kisan modulators on my FJR headlights. They have the daylight/nighttime sensor which qualifies them under Federal law. I've ridden past many a trooper, deputy, constable and city officer with them flashing. Haven't gotten as much as a second look.

For the rear, I'm running these Kisan Tailblazers in my tail/brake housing - http://www.soundrider.com/store/kisan/kisan_tailblazer.htm along with a red Whelen LIN3 (emergency vehicle LED strobe) through a programmer that gives a half-dozen strobes before going steady whenever brakes are applied. Of course, you cannot display a flashing/strobing red light anywhere else except directly to the rear unless it's an emergency vehicle.

After reading the Texas Transportation Code provisions (and Federal DOT regs) that apply to vehicle lighting, I've concluded that the setup on my bike is legal. If it gets me pulled over somewhere, I'll deal with that. As someone who came within inches of being hit from behind (while using only stock tail/brake lights) by an SUV going about 60mph (I saw her coming, pulled onto the improved shoulder, got passed on the right and watched the SUV flip over three times), I'm going to take extra steps to try to grab the attention of distracted motorists.
 
From what I have learned from various inspection stations is that the motorcycle "brake" light can only flash for a few seconds. A continually flashing brake light is not allowed. I usually install an in-line switch that allows me to select the desired tail light signature as part of additional LED lighting. I favor the hyperlite modules and blocks of auxillary LEDs. For forward facing lamps, I install bonifide driving lights.
 
Research analysis indicates brake light flashers reduce rear enders. Intensity also makes a difference. I lean heavily on the front brake so adjust the front brake switch to come on BEFORE the brake begins to drag. That way I can use the brake light against tailgaters without engaging the brake. The rear brake light switch is adjusted to allow dragging the brake enough to hold the bike on a hill without the brake light being on. This combination allows hill holding with the rear brake while driving the cagers behind crazy by repeatedly turning the brake light on and off with the front brake lever. Even with a flashing brake light the system IS legal though the brake light can flash constantly when that contributes to safety.
 
The Bruce said:
Just a thought. Rather than mounting it on the bike, attach it to the back of your helmet. It will be higher and if you use the type that mount on most bicycles and riders they are not as bright as most brake lights. Or get some highly reflective stickers for the helmet.
Click to expand...

I use two rear facing flashers - and this, the helmet, is one location
 
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