“Equipping cars with Xenon headlights prevents accidents, Xenon headlights save livesâ€. This is the finding of a current study by TÃœV Rheinland.
If all vehicles registered in Germany were equipped with Xenon headlights instead of conventional halogen headlights, it would be possible to reduce thenumber of serious accidents occurring at night on country roads by over 50 percent each year, and by as much as 30 percent on motorways.
Detailed results of this survey have been published within a press release by TÃœV Rheinland, the 27th September 2007:
“TÃœV Rheinland Study Lifesaver Xenon headlights enhanced vision thanks to innovative vehicle lighting / Number of night-time accidents down significantly / Considerably fewer fatalities ologne/Germany 25th September 2007. Equipping cars with Xenon headlights save lives. This is the finding of a current study by TÃœV Rheinland. If all vehicles registered in Germany were equipped with Xenon headlights instead of conventional halogen headlights, it would be possible to reduce the number of serious accidents occurring at night on country roads by over 50 percent each year, and by much as 30 percent on motorways. This in turn equates to a total of six percent fewer accidents involving casualties and 18 percent fewer fatalities. The investigation by TÃœV Rheinland is based on a study by the Federal Highway Research Institute (Bundesanstalt für Straßenwesen, abbreviated to BASt). Its study finds that between 1991 and2002 the number of road traffic accidents occurring at night in Germany involving casualties decreased more significantly than the number of accidents occurring during the day. The objective of the current TÃœV Rheinland study was to find out whether or not there is a correlation between this drop in the number of accidents and innovative developments deployed in the area of vehicle lighting and more specifically the introduction of Xenon headlights. “To find this out, we compared the rate of accidents involving high-end cars with and without Xenon headlights. We were able to prove that on country roads and motorways Xenon headlights have a statistically significant influence on the accident rate – and, what is more, irrespective of other technical innovations such as anti-lock brakes and ESP”, says TÃœV Rheinland expert Dr. Hendrik Schäbe. As to be expected, Xenon headlights have no influence on the accident rate in urben traffic due to there being sufficient street lighting in cities. Currently, only around ten percent of all cars registered in Germany are fitted with Xenon lights. “And this despite the fact, that the number of night-time accidents is continuing to decrease with the increasing proportion of Xenon headlights. Our analysis substantiates this”, explains Schäbe.”
The TÃœV Rheinland Group is a leading provider of technical services worldwide. The Group employs more than 11,000 people in over 340 locations in 60 countries on all continents and generates annual revenues of over € 900 million. The Group’s mission and guiding principle is to achieve sustained development of safety and quality. The employees of the TÃœV Rheinland Group are driven by the conviction that social and industrial development can only be achieved through technological progress. It is particularly for this reason that the safe and responsible deployment of technical innovations, products and facilities is so important. The company has been a member of the United Nations’ Global Compact initiative since2006. The TÃœV Rheinland Group lays claim to a history spanning over 130 years and is headquartered in Cologne.