A bill under consideration in the state Legislature would require all new cars sold in the state after Jan. 1, 2026 to be equipped with adaptive headlights that illuminate the road without shining light into oncoming vehicles’ windshields.
According to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, adaptive driving beam headlight systems (ADB) use automatic headlight beam switching technology to reduce illumination to occupied areas of the road and increase illumination to unoccupied areas. Adaptive beams are particularly useful for illuminating pedestrians, animals and objects from long distances without reducing visibility to drivers of other vehicles.
“According to a study by the American Automobile Association, ADB illuminates the road 86 percent more brightly than current headlight technology, but without the glare,” sponsor Rep. Lindsey Sabadosa (D-Northampton) said in a statement. “Smart headlights make adjustments approximately 5,000 times per second to direct light at specific parts of the road. [that is] “You won’t have the beam shining directly into other drivers’ faces because it’s already being illuminated by oncoming traffic.”
Sabadosa said automakers have changed headlight bulbs from halogen bulbs that emit a yellow light to blue LED bulbs that are at least four times brighter than the previous bulbs. The result is brighter light without having to turn on the high beams. The brighter light significantly improves nighttime visibility for drivers, but the position and glare of the headlights are dangerous to oncoming traffic.
“This legislation seeks to address the problem of overly bright headlights,” Sabadosa said. “There have been numerous news articles about the growing problem of overly bright headlights on Massachusetts highways. While headlights improve driver safety to some extent, they also blind oncoming vehicles and do not contribute to road safety. The solution is adaptive headlight technology, or smart headlights.”
Sabadosa said he’s received several emails from constituents who are concerned about driving at night because of harsh headlights, but they’re not alone: In a Boston.com poll, 93 percent of 600 respondents said current car headlights are too bright.
Many luxury cars, including BMW and Mercedes, already have the technology, and adaptive headlights are mandated in Canada, China and the European Union.
“There’s talk of bringing it to the U.S.,” Sabadosa added, “but someone has to start pushing it in multiple states before more OEMs start offering it.”
Emilee Klein can be reached at eklein@gazettenet.com.
