Editor:
Many vehicles these days have really bright, white LED lights that make driving on our dark, little rural “highway” a very unpleasant and potentially dangerous experience for oncoming traffic. A couple of Sundays ago we were driving back from Gibsons around 5 p.m. It had just gotten dark and there was a lot of traffic coming toward us from the Sechelt area with these type of lights. We were just approaching ts’ukw’um (Wilson Creek) and my husband and I were just discussing this and what a terrible time of day it was to be driving. Suddenly, a deer somehow found a break in the traffic and came racing across the highway from the other side of the road. We only saw it when it was in our headlights, so we had no chance to avoid it, and sadly, we hit it.
We pulled over but could see no trace of the deer with our flashlights, but presume it was badly injured. We were okay but the car was damaged, and the deer probably dead or soon to be. We reported the incident to the Conservation Officer.
I will wonder if this incident could have been avoided without those dazzling lights.
I would love to hear how others find night driving when oncoming traffic has ultra-bright lights, especially on the highway when it’s raining. Does your vehicle have them? Do they really make us safer?
Sincerely,
Bette Chadwick
Sechelt
