Remember, clocks go back at weekend

Road safety groups launch safety awareness campaigns ahead of daylight saving, which sees the nights draw in

Published Last updated

Remember - the clocks go back an hour this weekend, meaning it will be light earlier in the morning but darkness will also fall earlier in the evening.

The time-change, officially, takes place at 3am on Sunday, October 29 - but for most of us, it is simply a case of remembering to change our clocks either before we go to bed on Saturday, or when we wake up on Sunday.

The time change has prompted road safety groups the Association Prévention routière, and the Association nationale pour l'amélioration de la vue to join forces with Radio Vinci Autoroutes to raise awareness of the dangers of defective car headlights.

The Lumière et Vision: Objectif Bien Vu campaign sees about 50 regional Association Prévention routière groups offering free headlamp checks - for information on your nearest check site, click here

The group said that, in 2016, nearly 3 million vehicles on French roads had defective lights. Night driving represents less than 10% of traffic, but nearly half of fatal accidents.

Meanwhile, 10,000 winter safety kits are this week been handed out to pedestrians and cyclists in towns and cities across France to ensure they are more easily seen and safe after dark in winter, when road traffic collisions involving pedestrians increase 40%.

The kits included a high-visibility vest and reflective bracelets.