headlights on or off at truck stops?

I prefer to turn the headlights off when the steers hit the 'private property' part of the lot. I just do that as a courtesy cool thing. If it is too dark for that then I have turned off the main headlights still but turned on the fog lights. This is something I have been doing for over 20 years. Going out on dark jobsites, living in a condo complex, anywhere private property I am in the habit of turning off the headlights. When I drove Hummers and 5 tons in the Marines, we drove out in the sticks with No Lights At All.

I guess it had always been this way but sometime in the early 90's I noticed truckers parked on off/on ramps all up and down I-5 at night with just their running lights on. In this day and age the laws have come along making all that illegal now. Ambulance chasing lawyers will hammer you if you didn't have your lights on and something happened. It's a crazy world now. Soon they will go back in your day to discover whether you wiped the required amount of times before that crash/accident.

 

Point taken, and you've given me something more to think about when behind a driver that is backing.

Thank you.

 

The "rookie option" as you put it, is not being aware of your surroundings...no matter the situation! In a dark parking lot, why would you (or the other vehicle) be moving at such a speed that would require evasive action beyond stopping within 5 feet. In a parking lot...you don't need your accelerator, idle is the correct speed....and if you can't see what is around you, maybe even an idle speed is too fast. It's one thing to have your headlights on in a dark parking lot...no issue there, maybe even high beams, but as soon as you are aware of another vehicle approaching, you have those vehicles marker lights to show what is in close proximity to him, and your marker lights for your immediate proximity.

If you can't see in (as the examples have been except for yours) a lit parking lot, or a shipper/receiver lot, then you perhaps should be driving when the sun is up...as you would possibly be on the dimmer side of blind and should not be operating the vehicle. What you have avoided was the original question and how should the driver be courteous to other drivers?!

Your 2 million miles awards from the ATA does not impress me....especially if it took you 24 years to get there. The ATA is nothing more than a group of carrier owners who pat themselves on the back when they find a new and improved way to screw the drivers. I figure it took you 8-10 years to start being safe!

"INSTILL THE SAME WISDOM AS I"....YOU'RE FULL OF SOMETHING....oh I see...you're full of yourself!

46 year lucky streak! You are really full of yourself aren't you? You don't know a thing about Crow's father, and you assume he drove 46 years without skill or care for the other drivers. But when one accuses another blindly, it is usually through the eyes of someone who is as guilty of the offense as the one being criticized.

The bottom line is that if you need your headlights to see in a dark parking lot, use them but not to the point of blinding another driver. If the truck stop is poorly lit, and a driver is trying to back into a spot, I have on many occasions, turned my rig so that my lights can give the backing driver some light on his intended spot. Keep in mind that with him/her backing, any truck on the other side will not be effected by my lights as the backing truck is blocking the source of the light.

For the poster that mentioned he was in a Prostar and you can't turn your lights off...there is a headlight breaker button on the steering wheel. I use this in truck stops, parking lots, and crossing scales at night.

 

LMAO! You're funny, Cheif.

Not anymore than I'll bow my head for your piddly arsed ATA award or 24 year safety.....errr....lucky streak.

 

Agree 100%!

Also, if you have your lights on, you get to see if/when someone comes walking out from between two trucks. Why put yourself into the possibility of having an incident because you limited your visibility? Now if I'm driving down a row and someone ahead of me is backing into a spot, I'll flip to parking lights until he/she is done. Once I start moving again, the headlights come back on.

 

That's about the size of it. Obviously there a few within our ranks that would rather place "being cool on the stool" and "tradition" above good judgement. It's a scary world and that's why my lights are on in the dark of the night. Others might as well not bother burning lights, because it's pretty much documented right here in this thread that their bulbs ain't to bright to begin with.

 

what if our truck has drl, and wont shut off till you kill the truck, i can crank mine with park brake engaged, but once i supply air, i cant shut them off no matter what until i power cycle the key

 

Headlights OFF !!!
OFF !!!
OFF !!!

Markers okay, but stop being a new breed idiot.
Nobody wants to have your lights shining in their truck, regardless of "cab curtains".
That's just a lame stupid excuse.

Turn them off like we have done without problem for 50 years.
yes, It's just "the way it's done", and has been done, for a long time.
Stop bucking tradition and doing stupid stuff just because you can.

Also,
Turn your high beams OFF if you see headlights approaching you.
Your high beams blind other drivers, and failure to dim them is a traffic offense in most states.


And while you are at it, stop using your high beams to "signal me over" after I pass you.
I like my night vision, and will do fine without your help.
(not that i even want the help of some wheelholder who is dumb enough to brightlight me)

I won't even start on fog/driving lights.
They usually are in need of a "hammer treatment" anyway.




.......and SLOW DOWN !!!!

IDLE, IDLE, IDLE.... on the LOT !!!!

Why do I see stupid "new breed" wheelholders driving at road speeds in the truck stop ???
Some are in 7th or 8th gear and 25+mph....
(yes, i'm serious. just count their shifts sometime)

Is it just because they haven't almost hit another driver yet and been yanked out of their truck and had some sense beaten into them ??? (if possible)

And these are the same morons who will tell us "old guys" our "traditions" are "stupid".

 

Well that depends, i look at from the insurance side of it, so i leave em on for that reason, otherwise once i get back in en set, its lights out, i like my darkness, but sometimes i get parked next too mr or mss super trucker with a thousand running lights all over the place on his-her tractor and on the trl , i used too think all them lights at the top down the side and go around the whole top, i thought , for each light on top that trl he went thru alot bosses to get that many lights, one boss = one lights, hes been out here long time i usda amuse myself that way too break up the bordem at driving at night, but if you look at most loading docks , they have a sign thats says turn off the lights, so i asked why, he told me it was fire insurance resons, the taillights are hot and the dust from the warehouse could cacth a dust fire he told me, i just said okay and walked far away too my cab, but most times i just leave off anyway , if i dont need em, but when i got my new truck, everyboby was hollering at me, why, becuse it daytime running headlights , no swicth too turn em off , till you turn the ign off, gees that makes all drivers mad cause they dont too get caught with there two legged bambies, well sorry should close the curtains

 

By "driving lights" are you referring to fog lights or are you referring to marker lights on during daylight hours?

Some trucks have been programmed for those lights (some, the headlights) to be on whenever the air brake has been pushed in and there isn't a thing the driver can do about it. You will see this a lot with trucks that go to Canada. My headlights automatically come on when I turn on the wipers, even to use the windshield washer. When I had the Cascadia, the headlights would come on when I pushed the airbrake. The only way I could run without daytime headlights, which annoyed me because a few times, I forgot to turn on the tail lights at night...I had headlights, was to turn on the markers and run with them. That way, I could tell when it was time to turn on the headlights. On the Volvo, I ran markers because the front ones by the headlights would come on with air brake release. And that just plain irritated me. Now, I turn the markers on during the day so if a car driver does something stoopid in front of me, they can't say they didn't see me because I didn't have any lights on. Riiiight. Like you could miss this big orange thing.