A Pasadena man has started a national petition to ban new bolder, whiter headlights because they create a dangerous distraction for other drivers.
Donald Berry is working to ban what he calls "blinding headlights."
“At the very least, the powers that be should be investigating this.”
He says that these lights can cause accidents and are unnecessary.
“I don’t think prior to this, anybody was going: ‘Oh, my headlights aren’t bright enough’.”
Ophthalmology professor Dr. David Kleinman says it's true that the glare from headlights can make it hard for eyes to focus.
“The bright illumination can be disabling...the second issue is the color of the illumination. Bluer light has an added stress.”
Director of Operations for Consumer Reports Auto Test Center, Jen Stockburger says all headlights--including the recently changed ones have to meet federal safety standards.
“That means they have to have a minimum level of brightness for seeing down the road. But they also can’t exceed the maximum level of brightness and glare...the data says that even though these brighter, whiter lights are a discomfort to oncoming drivers, they haven’t been the cause of crashes.”