High visibility safety vests can save lives

I am a firm believer in putting safety first. After learning about the dangers of car accidents, there is no reason why proper clothing should be avoided when working in limited visibility situations. For example, a high-visibility safety vest could save your life on a foggy bike ride to school, or on a rainy day of highway construction. Let me explain…

We all know the purpose of a highly visible safety vest. They are to protect us and keep us visible in situations of limited visibility. Now clearly a vest can’t literally fight things like oncoming cars. However, it can make it easy for drivers to spot you with its fluorescent and reflective features. These protective garments are grouped into different classes (one, two, three and “e”). In every situation, it is vitally important to wear one across the chest.

Class One – This is the lowest level of highly visible safety vests. They have the least amount of coverage which is measured in square inches times the amount of background and reflective surfaces used. They provide great protection for people bicycling on a foggy day or traveling on foot at times of limited visibility. It can be scary riding your bike on the side of the road when cars zoom by behind you and it’s pouring with rain and all the time after dark. It is a safe idea to wear a vest with reflective surfaces and bright colors so that you can be seen in all weather conditions at any time of the day. You have a much higher chance of being hit by a car if the driver cannot see you.

Class Two – Used to protect construction workers while working on roadsides. Although this class is intended for users who work in medium traffic conditions and speeds, they are still there for the same purpose. They will have more coverage for their users and provide a higher level of protection. Reported deaths related to construction workers are too high. A high visibility safety vest is one of the best things a construction worker can wear on the job when protecting themselves from oncoming traffic that they may not be particularly aware of (since they are concentrating on their work project). ).

Class Three – This is where it is most important to wear your high visibility safety vest. People wearing these vests are engaged in a more dangerous level of work and greater coverage and fluorescent/reflective surface area coverage is critical. They may be working on busy highways, or worse, busy highways during darkness or bad weather. While speeds are reduced and signs warn drivers about construction, we wouldn’t be warned about tickets for hitting construction workers if it wasn’t an issue. You just have to wear a highly visible vest if this is your line of work. Your life literally depends on it.

Be careful and wear a highly visible safety vest on the road, whether you’re directing traffic at 5 mph or doing work on Highway 9. After all, the last thing you want to do is put your life in danger when a simple vest would do the job.