traffic safety

Dog and kids trick-or-treating in the neighborhood wearing halloween costumes and safety reflectors

Halloween Safety Tips 2022

/ traffic safety /

Halloween is supposed to be dark, spooky and scary. But it should be fun scary, not dangerous scary, and there is difference between jumping high from a sudden “BOOO!” and getting hurt and landing in the ER. A link to a Washington Post article on why Halloween is so dangerous to kids landed in our inbox the other day and they the got it surprisingly right. Traffic and cars are BY FAR the biggest danger to kids on Halloween and that year-around infrastructure improvements are needed to keep wakers and bicyclists safe on Halloween and all other days of the year.

Dog and kids trick-or-treating in the neighborhood wearing halloween costumes and safety reflectors
No Halloween costume is complete for neighborhood trick-or-treating without safety reflectors.

However, today’s trick-or-treating kids will not wait for years to have safer streets, so how do you help your kids (teens included!) be safe on Halloween right now? Here are our Halloween Safety Tips for 2022:

1. Use safety reflectors. At least two (front and back – or – left and right), preferably more and let them dangle.
2. Talk traffic safety with your kids – start BEFORE Halloween, or even better, discuss traffic safety with your kids year-around.
3. Be a good role model: Follow traffic rules both when walking and driving and wear safety reflectors when out and about after dark.
4. Remind drivers of all ages about trick-or-treaters and about the importance of putting away distractions while driving and keeping to the speed limit.

Stylish Safety Reflectors

We believe safety reflectors should be as stylish and fun as costumes, makeup and other Halloween accessories. Therefore, we have over the years expanded our collection of ghosts and jack O’Lantern safety reflectors to also include skulls, ninjas, which hats, bats and cats. And then of course any of our other reflectors might be a good fit depending on the costume theme. If you are a parent accompanying your kids and want something sleeker than a ghost, get some safety reflectors that are designed with grown-ups in mind here!

Gallery of Halloween safety reflectors by funflector - ghosts, skulls, ninjas, cats, bats and more
Pick your favorite Halloween safety reflector. Hint: there is no “better”, they are all super bright!

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Halloween Safety 2021

/ traffic safety / , ,

The evenings are getting darker, the leaves are turning to beautiful shades of red, yellow and orange and Halloween is just around the corner. Time to plan costumes and decoration, but also to prep your teens and kids for a safe and fun night. Drivers not seeing trick-or-treaters is the number one Halloween safety concern that should be on every adult’s mind this week. It is not too late to order funflector reflectors to help keep them seen and safe. We have a wide range of reflectors, including some ultra-bright Halloween reflectors that are fun and stylish. From bright orange jack-o-lantern to a more discreet black cat, there is something for everyone. To make sure you get them in time for Halloween, order them by Monday, November 25 at noon CST.

Children trick-or-treating in the neighborhood. Some with safety reflectors some without. Halloween safety 2021 is both about staying away from the Covid-19 virus and be visible in traffic.
Children trick-or-treating in the neighborhood. Good reflectors make a difference to their visibility and safety.

4 Steps to Halloween Safety

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Halloween Safety 2021Read More »

Halloween Safety 2021 Read More »

Equinox 2021 – Shorter Days are Coming

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Where did the summer go? Tomorrow, September 22, 2021, is already equinox, the day when day and night are equally long. From there on, the days are rapidly getting shorter, making it harder to avoid being out in the dark. Last weekend, we had a furry visitor and we barely managed to take the post-dinner walk before it was pitch black. Just in the last week Chicago has lost 21 minutes of sunlight, 13 in the evening and 8 in the morning. Today, the sun rises at 6:37am and is gone again at 6:47pm. It’s hard to adjust your schedule when the light is changing that rapidly, even for us who are tracking it meticulously. Over the summer, we were a little lazy and did not always bring safety reflectors, but that has to change now. Equinox also means safety reflector season because who wants to get caught unseen in the dark? Better seen than sorry!

Safety reflectors are must-haves for dog walkers and dogs alike now when the nights will be longer than the days.

Is a reflective dog leash bright enough?

Using a reflective dog leash is great, but as you can see in the video above, the funflector safety reflectors are brighter. Of course, it depends on what quality and how much reflective material the leash has, so test yours so you know. The brighter the reflectors the further away the drivers can see you. This is particularly important along streets with faster traffic. Our leash might be bright enough on a residential street with very slow traffic, but for a highway, we need more reflective power. We like to hang one reflector in each end of the leash for extra safety.

Red and black ninja safety reflector by funflector
The reflector hanging on the dog leash in the video is a ninja. Available here.

The dog walker needs to be seen too! We have plenty of reflectors hanging on our jacket zipper pulls, but that is of little use when it’s too warm for jackets. So this time of year, reflective slap wraps are the most practical solution. They only take a second to slap on and are easy to wear for walkers, runner and bicyclists.

The funflector team

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School Bus Driver Shortage? Organize a Walking School Bus

/ go green, traffic safety /

What do you do when your school district doesn’t have enough school bus drivers to pick up all students in time for class? Some school districts tell parents to drive their kids to school. Others instead encourage parents to organize a “Walking School Bus”. A typical walking school bus is a group of elementary school children walking together to and from school along a fixed route. Kids who live along the route can join the group when it passes their home or designated stops. Depending on the size of the group, one or more parents supervise and teach the kids how to safely navigate car traffic and street crossings. The concept is used around the world, but the pandemic-induced school bus driver shortage has put a spotlight on the concept also in the car-centric United States.

A walking school bus stop sign in Rome, Italy.
A walking school bus stop sign in Rome, Italy, that we snapped in 2016.

Montgomery County, MD, is Leading The Way

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School Bus Driver Shortage? Organize a Walking School BusRead More »

School Bus Driver Shortage? Organize a Walking School Bus Read More »

Halloween Safety

/ traffic safety / , , , ,
Halloween safety tips poem

Halloween is just a week away and it’s time not just to plan costumes and decoration but also to prep your teens and kids for a safe and fun night. Drivers not seeing trick-or-treaters is the number one halloween safety concern that should be on every adult’s mind this week. It is not too late to order funflector reflectors, ultra-bright Halloween reflectors that are fun and stylish. The Ninja and Ninja star safety reflectors are sailing up as our best sellers this year! From now to Halloween, we’ll promise to get any orders out our door within 24 hours.

4 Steps to Halloween Safety

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Halloween Safety Read More »

Pedestrian Crash Statistics :(

/ traffic safety / , ,

Walking is good for you. Every day, more people experience the wellbeing that comes from simple walks around the neighborhood or to nearby places. Unfortunately, as walking increases, so do traffic fatalities. The development of safe cars and better infrastructure has not yet caught up to the trend of walking. A whopping  3/4 of the crashes occur during the dark hours, at dusk or at dawn.

usa pedestrian fatailites 2014-2015
GHSA reports about an alarming 10% increase in pedestrian fatalities in 2015, of which 75% occur when it’s dark.

GHSA reports about an alarming 10% increase in pedestrian fatalities in 2015, of which 75% occur when it’s dark.

In a new report on pedestrian crash statistics, the GHSA (Governors Highway Safety Association) estimates a 10% increase in fatal pedestrian crashes from 2014 to 2015. Here are some quick facts:  …

Pedestrian Crash Statistics 🙁Read More »

Pedestrian Crash Statistics :( Read More »

Walk & Run On the Left Side!

/ traffic safety / , , ,

We drive and bike on the right side of the road. But did you know that on roads without sidewalks, it is safer to walk on the left side? That way you are facing the oncoming traffic and are more aware of potentially dangerous situations. It is quite obvious when you think about it, but it seems like most people have never been told.

(If you are in Britain, Australia or any other country where you drive on the left, just reverse the whole picture and walk on the right.)

The road below is the last stretch of my bike route to work and I keep looking over my shoulder the whole time. …

Walk & Run On the Left Side!Read More »

Walk & Run On the Left Side! Read More »

Fall Safety

/ traffic safety / , , , ,
High viz without #highviz colors. #bicycle and #pedestrian #safety with #style because it's better to be seen than sorry! #reflectivegear

Reminders to move the clocks back were many when daylight saving time ended a couple of days ago. What few talked about is that we now have one more dark hour in the afternoon with higher risk for pedestrian and bicycle crashes. In Time, we can read “Adding an hour of sunlight in the evening year-round would save the lives of more than 170 US pedestrians annually, according to a 2004 study in Accident Analysis and Prevention.” Since that is not happening anytime soon, we all need to make sure we are visible in traffic, especially when it’s dark.

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Fall SafetyRead More »

Fall Safety Read More »

4 Halloween Safety Tips for Dealing with the Real Danger

/ traffic safety / , , ,

Are you looking for Halloween safety tips to share with your kids? We certainly hope so, but we also hope that you focus on where the real danger is – TRAFFIC!!! Enjoy Halloween and don’t go nuts worrying about things that rarely happen. We have written about this earlier years and we will keep doing it until every trick-or-treater wear reflectors!

When we look at statistics of what accidents actually happens on Halloween, there is one type that pops out: pedestrian accidents. Cars are the number one threat to trick-or-treaters and sadly, Halloween is the deadliest night all year for kid pedestrians. The graph below shows fatalities per day. Look at October 31st! The threat from cars and drivers is real. For every fatal accident, there are also about 10 seriously injured kids…

Child pedestrian fatalities by day of the year. How long did it take for you to spot Halloween?
Child pedestrian fatalities by day of the year. How long did it take for you to spot Halloween? Klick on the image to get to the original article.

Let’s focus on Halloween safety tips that make a significant difference. …

4 Halloween Safety Tips for Dealing with the Real DangerRead More »

4 Halloween Safety Tips for Dealing with the Real Danger Read More »

Glow In the Dark or Reflective?

/ reflector basics, traffic safety

“My reflector does not glow in the dark, what’s wrong?” That’s a question we often get and luckily, nothing is wrong. It’s “reflective”, not “glow-in-the-dark”, and there is a big difference!

Glow-in-the-dark products make light on their own, and have a built-in energy source. It can be a battery or a chemical reaction (like in glow sticks that you need to “pop” before they light up). Eventually they run out of power and stop emitting light.  Glow-in-the-dark products often emit light in all directions and light up the nearby surrounding but have a limited range.

Reflective and glow-in-the-dark is not the same and the products have different purposes. Glow-i-the-dark toys are good at lighting up the immediate surrounding. Reflectors are good at bouncing back the car head light to the driver at a long range. Choose wisely!
Reflective and glow-in-the-dark is not the same and the products have different purposes. Glow-i-the-dark toys are good at lighting up the immediate surrounding. Reflectors are good at bouncing back the car head light to the driver at a long range. Choose wisely!

Reflective (or more correctly “retro-reflective”) means reflecting light back to where the light came from. If you shine a flash light on a pedestrian safety reflector (or a reflective road sign) …

Glow In the Dark or Reflective?Read More »

Glow In the Dark or Reflective? Read More »

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