Feeding lighting

What lights must be run and what lights may be run.

Art. 32 and 33: Lighting when driving.

Drivers of a motor vehicle, a moped, a moped, a motorized bicycle and a disabled vehicle equipped with an internal combustion engine, or a disabled vehicle equipped with an electric motor and equipped with an enclosed body, must use dipped-beam headlights when:

• day, if visibility is severely obstructed;
• night.

Drivers of a disabled vehicle equipped with an electric motor and not equipped with an enclosed body will then display the lights referred to in Article 5.18.43(1) of the Vehicle Regulations.

Running high beams is permitted except in:

• day;
• encountering other road users;
• following another vehicle at close range.

Taillight and license plate light should be on at:

• great light,
• dim light,
• city light or
• mislight.

Art. 33 Trailer lighting

Coupled trailers must display rear lights, rear registration plate lights and the sidelights prescribed in Art. 5.12. 51 and Art. 5.13. 51 of the Vehicle Regulations during the day, if visibility is seriously impaired, and at night.

The half hour before sunset and after sunrise is thus dropped. Within built-up areas, driving with high beams is now allowed.

By the Decree of May 27, 1999, amending the 1990 Traffic Rules and Signs Regulations and the Road Traffic Administrative Provisions Decree in connection with the implementation of the Sustainable Safety Start Program (Bulletin of Acts and Decrees 268), Article 32 RVV 1990 was supplemented in the sense that drivers of disabled vehicles are also required to use dipped headlights during the day, if visibility is seriously impaired, and at night.

The argument for this addition was that the Vtr requires disabled vehicles to have high beam and low beam headlights. However, this is not entirely correct. The Vtr contains that requirement in Article 5.10.51 only with respect to disabled vehicles equipped with an internal combustion engine or an electric motor and equipped with an enclosed body.

Article 5.18.43 Vehicle Regulation stipulates with respect to disabled vehicles equipped with an electric motor and not equipped with enclosed bodywork that they must be equipped with light(s) and taillight(s). Furthermore, Article 5.1.5 Vehicle Regulation states that disabled vehicles equipped with an internal combustion engine and not equipped with enclosed bodywork must also meet the requirements set for mopeds with respect to lighting. Finally, there are no lighting requirements at all for disabled vehicles without engines.

Moreover, the requirement does not apply to disabled vehicles using the sidewalk or sidewalk and crossing from one sidewalk or sidewalk to another. The RVV 1990 thus went far beyond the regulation of vehicles in Article 32 with respect to drivers of a disabled vehicle without necessity.

By amending Article 32 RVV 1990 and Article 5.1.5, second paragraph, Vehicle Regulation, this unnecessary difference has been corrected. Of course, drivers of disabled vehicles are expected to display these lights during the day if visibility is severely impaired and at night. The obligation to provide lighting is thereby not limited to road sections intended for vehicles, but also applies to those road sections on which there are only pedestrians, such as pedestrian areas in inner cities and footpaths in parks.

Art. 34: Use of fog lights.

Drivers of motor vehicles and handicapped vehicles may use front fog lights when:

• misses
• snowfall
• rain,

which seriously obstructs visibility. In that case, those drivers are not required to use dipped-beam headlights.

The circumstance “seriously obstructing visibility” applies to all three types of weather, i.e., both fog, snowfall and rain.

The rear fog lamp may be used in the following cases:

• misses
• snowfall

that limits visibility to a distance of less than 50 meters.

Thus, the rear fog light should not be used in rain, as it is blinding under those conditions. The circumstance “which reduces visibility to a distance etc.” applies to both types of weather, i.e., both fog and snowfall.

Section 34, subsection 1, RVV 1990 allows drivers of a motor vehicle and of a disabled vehicle to display fog lights on the front of the vehicle during fog, snowfall or rain that seriously obstructs visibility. When running fog lights, the driver may be dazzled by the reflection of the driver’s own dipped beam in the process. Therefore, in these weather conditions, if the driver is running fog lights at the front of the vehicle, he does not have to use dipped beam headlights.

Art. 35: Lighting bicyclists, wagon and disabled vehicles without motor.

1. While riding at night or during the day if visibility is seriously impaired, bicyclists shall display lights in accordance with paragraphs 2 through 4.
2. A bicycle on two wheels and a bicycle on three wheels with one front wheel must be equipped with a white or yellow light carried on the front, unless the driver carries a white or yellow light on his chest.
3. On a bicycle on more than two wheels with two front wheels, two white or two yellow lights attached symmetrically to the left and right of the center must be carried at the front.
4. A bicycle must be equipped with a red rear light that is carried at the rear unless the driver or a passenger seated behind the driver is carrying a red light on his back.
5. A bicycle may be equipped with two amber light emitting turn signals at the front and two at the rear.
6. No more lights may be carried on a bicycle, by the driver thereof or by a passenger seated behind the driver than the lights specified in paragraphs 2 through 4.

Drivers of a disabled vehicle, which is not equipped with an engine, are required to use front and rear lights during the day, if visibility is severely obstructed, or at night when using the roadway, bicycle path or bicycle/moped path. The requirement was introduced because it is desirable from a road safety perspective to make these drivers visible to other drivers on the bike path and bike/moped path.

Art. 35a: Lighting requirements

1. The lighting referred to in Article 35 shall not blind other road users.
2. The lights referred to in Article 35 shall not flash.
3. The lighting referred to in Article 35 shall:
   1. be continuously visible at the front to oncoming road users;
   2. at the rear are constantly visible to road users approaching from behind.

Article 35b

1. Drivers of a vehicle shall display dipped-beam headlights and tail lights by day, if visibility is seriously impaired, or by night.
2. Drivers of a disabled vehicle, which is not equipped with an engine, shall display front and rear lights during the day, if visibility is seriously impaired, or at night when using the roadway, bicycle path or bicycle/moped path.

Art. 36: Lighting riders and livestock handlers.

Riders and handlers of riding or draft animals or livestock must be at:

• day, if visibility is severely obstructed
• night

carry a lantern with white or yellow light to the front and red light to the rear.

Art. 37: Lighting columns.

Columns and parades formed by pedestrians must be outside built-up areas at:

• day, if visibility is severely obstructed
• night

carry white or yellow light on the left front and red light on the rear.

Both lights must radiate in all directions.

Within the bowl, this rule does not apply because of sufficient street lighting.

Art. 38, 39 and 40: Lighting stationary vehicles

Drivers of motor vehicles on more than two wheels stationary outside built-up areas on:

• the carriageway
• located along auto (highways)
  • parking lots
  • parking bays
  • emergency lanes
  • ports of refuge

need to at:

• day, if visibility is severely obstructed
• night

running city light and taillight.

Art. 39

Stationary trailers outside built-up areas on the carriageway and on parking lanes, parking bays, emergency lanes and refuge areas located along freeways and expressways must display rear lights and the sidelights prescribed in the Vehicles Regulations by day, if visibility is seriously impaired, and by night.

Art. 40

Stationary cars must display front and rear lights outside built-up areas on the roadway in daytime, if visibility is seriously impaired, and at night….

Within the bowl, these rules do not apply because of sufficient street lighting and the lower speed of driving.

Art. 41: Special lights

1. Notwithstanding Article 32(1), drivers of motor vehicles may use daytime running lights during the day. The daytime running light shall not be operated simultaneously with any other light at the front of the vehicle.
2. Drivers of a motor vehicle may display side, cornering, corner, directional, marker or stake lights at the same time as dipped beam or front fog light.

When running high beams, all lights may already be run. So this need not be mentioned here.

By the Decree of August 31, 1999, amending the Vehicle Regulations with regard to lighting (Stb. 394), article 5.2.57 of the Vtr was amended to the effect that passenger cars may be equipped with daytime running lights complying with the provisions of Directive 76/756/EEC (OJ 27 September 1976, L 262). This overlooked also amending the RVV 1990 accordingly.

The amendment in question to Article 41(1) RVV 1990 corrected this omission. It should be noted that daytime running lights may only be used during daylight hours. At dusk, darkness, low visibility during the day and in tunnels, the dipped beam must be used instead of the daytime running light.

Article 41a: Illuminated transparencies

1. Illuminated transparencies providing information on the destination or use of the vehicle may be carried by:
   1. passenger cars, commercial vehicles and motorcycles:
      1. in use by the police;
      2. in use by the fire department;
      3. in use by roadside assistance services;
      4. in use by the Department of Public Works;
      5. used by physicians;
      6. used for driving instruction or taking a driving test;
      7. used by ambulance services licensed under the Ambulance Transport Act to provide ambulance transport;
      8. of emergency services that are engaged in providing first-line emergency assistance on the instructions of either a central post as referred to in Section 1 of the Ambulance Transport Act or a central post for ambulance transport as referred to in Section 4, first paragraph, under a, of the Medical Assistance at Accidents and Disasters Act;
   2. buses of public transportation services;
   3. company cars of transportation supervisors;
   4. passenger and commercial vehicles equipped as animal ambulances;
   5. cabs.
2. Passenger cars, commercial vehicles and motorcycles used for driving instruction or taking a driving test may only be equipped with an illuminated transparency displaying the letter “L” prescribed under the Driving Licenses Regulations.
3. Notwithstanding paragraph 1:
   1. illuminated transparencies carried by the vehicles referred to in subsection 1(a)(1° through 4°) and subsection (c) display directions for other road traffic,
   2. cabs are equipped with illuminated transparencies that display the following information:
      1. rates;
      2. name of the cab company; and
      3. phone number of the cab company.
4. Cabs equipped with illuminated transparencies displaying fares may only display these lights when in a cab rank.
5. Illuminated transparencies shall not be carried by vehicles other than those mentioned in subsection 1 and shall not be carried in a manner other than as provided in subsections 1 through 4.