Visibility in winter: Free lamp exchange in Braunau and Mattighofen

Von WOM

In the dark season, defective vehicle lighting can not only lead to annoying, but also to dangerous situations. In order to sensitize this security risk, the Mattighofen police inspection and the ÖAMTC acted in a special project at 18 locations, including Braunau and Mattighofen. In this campaign, vehicles were stopped with poor lights, but were not punished. Instead, the drivers received help for free: Technicians of the ÖAMTC exchanged defective lamps directly on site.

One could say that in the winter months, when many activities fall into dusk or darkness, it is particularly important to be seen well. According to Statistics Austria, there were a total of 8,546 accidents with personal injury in 2023, a large part of which took place in the dark hours of the day - especially between October and February. Therefore, functioning vehicle lighting plays a crucial role in safety in road traffic.

vehicle lighting and safety

Joachim Kweton, the head of the ÖAMTC base in Braunau, explained the need for intact lighting: "A functioning vehicle lighting is crucial, not only for your own point of view, but also for other road users to perceive the vehicle correctly. If only a rear light or a headlight is defective, dangerous situations cannot work properly, especially if the indicators cannot work properly."

The police complied with this initiative to their preventive approach. Vehicles with defective lighting were stopped by the officials, and the drivers immediately received support instead of having to expect a parking ticket. A total of 17 lamps in Braunau and Mattighofen were allowed to be replaced, with almost 140 defective lamps being replaced all over Upper Austria. Where the exchange was not possible, the affected vouchers received a free lamp exchange in a ÖAMTC base.

role of visibility in road traffic

The police were pleased with the positive course of the campaign. "Visibility is the key to avoiding accident, especially in fog, dusk or darkness," said chief inspector Walter Schanda from the Mattighofen police inspection. "If we only prevented a dangerous situation, this light action was a complete success."

These measures aim to raise awareness of traffic safety and to focus on the dangers that can assume defective lighting. The direct help on site not only increases security, but also strengthened cooperation between the police and the ÖAMTC.

For more information on similar actions and the current developments in the field of traffic safety, see the reporting on www.tips.at .