ORLANDO, Fla. – News 6 traffic safety expert Trooper Steve Montiero answers viewer questions about the rules of the road, helping Orlando-area residents become better drivers by being better educated.
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The most recent question asked of Trooper Steve was, “What is the difference between daytime running lights and actual vehicle lights?”
“If there is something that I know that I have pushed onto you since I have joined the News 6 team, it’s to always manually turn on your headlights and never rely on your ‘automatic’ headlights option,” Trooper Steve said. “I am not saying that your car feature doesn’t help, but what I am saying is it doesn’t always work.”
Trooper Steve said he captured the image with the video above while driving into work.
“That white BMW SUV had their front headlights on, leading them to believe that all their other lights were on,” Trooper Steve said. “Obviously, this is not the case. The taillights on this SUV are clearly not illuminated.”
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He said the driver made a mistake, not the vehicle.
“It is the driver’s responsibility to always manually engage their headlights in conditions that require them,” Trooper Steve said. “Driving at night would be one of those situations. Depending on your model of vehicle, your automatic lights don’t turn everything on all the time. So making sure you, as the driver, go through your normal mental checklist while driving is key.”
Don’t be that driver who thinks the car is going to do everything for you, Trooper Steve said.
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