"Is that driver blind?"

 If you've ever thought this after a close call with a car at night, your clothing choices may be part of the problem. After dark, what you wear dramatically affects how well drivers and other road users see you—and that visibility can be a matter of life or death.   

 Pedestrian fatalities have risen 35% over the past 12 years, and 76% of pedestrian deaths from vehicle accidents in 2018 happened after dark, according to data. While improving street lighting and lowering speed limits in busy areas helps, pedestrians can take critical steps to stay safe too—starting with what they wear.   

 High-visibility clothing is a key tool. It uses retroreflective materials that bounce light back to its source (like car headlights), making the wearer far brighter than regular clothing. This extends the distance at which drivers spot pedestrians, giving more time to stop. Even better: adding retroreflective strips to moving joints (arms, knees, wrists, ankles) boosts visibility 10 times more than wearing just a reflective vest. This works because our brains naturally recognize human movement—called biomotion—making these moving markers impossible to miss.   

 Retroreflective gear has a catch, though: it only works when lit by headlights or other external light. If you're outside that light range, it won't help. That's where LED lights come in. Adding LEDs to clothing solves this problem, keeping you visible even when headlights don't reach you.   

 Flashing LED lights (on clothing or gear) let drivers spot pedestrians from farther away than retroreflective materials alone—day or night. This matters most in tricky spots like intersections, where headlights might not aim directly at you. Flashing lights grab attention, even with streetlights on.   

 The danger? Pedestrians often overestimate how visible they are at night—and underestimate how much high-visibility gear helps. But education helps: people who learn about these risks adjust their views, recognizing the value of safety gear.   

 You might feel overly noticeable in flashing lights and reflective strips—like a lit-up Christmas tree. But being seen is far better than becoming a statistic.