Frankly, yes. To paraphrase from a meme - the biker in black has to be lucky every time. A car only has to be unlucky once.

In a vehicle-bicycle/pedestrian incident at the posted speed limit, no matter who is at fault, it's the bicyclist/pedestrian who will be dead. If someone wants to be alive, as well as correct, they'd do well to make themselves as visible as possible.

But that's too practical a view to hold here on HN, I realize that.

EDIT - I just realized this is likely in response to 'their fault' in my original message. I stand by it though. Riding a bike at night on an unlit 50mph rural road with no reflectors while wearing black is, as the GP said, suicide by car.

You didn't mention night in your first message.

You'd still be criminally at fault, and if you can't stop in time for a cyclist you're over-driving your headlights, but the cyclists would be well served by buying a back light for visibility. Keep in mind that wild animals can't, and they'll have roughly the same visibility as the cyclist.

Yup, and there are thousands of animal strikes every year in my state alone. Every three days or so there's fresh roadkill on the side of the road when I drive into work.

Night, day, twilight - a bicyclist can only increase their likelyhood of surviving their trip by adding reflectors and wearing bright clothing.

In a lot of states, a cyclist riding at night without a rear light is also breaking the law and at fault.

Yep, and I've still managed to avoid hitting all of those I've encountered by driving slower at night in places where I can't see as far ahead of my vehicle.

I'm not disagreeing that it's your responsibility to not crash, but as noted farther up - people hit wildlife all the time.

It's pretty rare for somebody who hits a deer to be charged with reckless driving, so it's not like there is actually an absolute responsibility to never out drive your headlights.

Besides the legal aspects, anyone riding a bike after dark without any illumination is being irresponsible. Whether the car is at fault or not, it's not going to be the guy in the car who dies from it.

So far. Just hope that you're never distracted at just the wrong time. It only takes a couple of seconds to overrun your headlights, even at lower speeds.

A car with high beams cresting a hill behind you. A car with high beams cresting the hill in front of you. An animal. A drink. A radio station change. A text message.

But a light or bright clothes won't change that situation - if you're distracted or are coming up to the top of a hill reflection won't save the biker.

It’s the difference between having 4 seconds to avoid a collision, and having 30 or more (I’ve seen a few well outfitted bikers over a mile away before).

Reflectors make that big of a difference; they don’t look or move naturally, and thus play well to our night vision strengths, even to a distracted driver.

I agree that bicyclists should outfit their bikes to be visible in the conditions they will encounter. But it it's also our responsibility as drivers to maintain a sense of the unseen hazards of our environment so as to avoid killing people who aren't as savvy as us. I wouldn't personally cycle without lights or reflectors but the fact that tons of people do means that if I'm not sure then I must assume there's someone out there.

Also, sometimes people are walking in dark clothes on the road. Maybe their car broke down. Maybe they're trick or treating. Maybe they were out later than expected. Regardless, demanding other people dress like the world is a construction site so you can drive fast is impolite.

It's practical in the same way that a bulletproof backpack is practical for school. The person introducing the element of danger bears the responsibility for handling that danger responsibly.

Reflectors are required in all 50 states. Active lighting is generally required after dusk. If you don't have these then it's hard to blame "reckless cagers" for not being able to see you.