El Pasoan’s Love Using Their High Beams Too Much

It’s 4 a.m. I’m crawling along Scenic Drive on my way to the station, still waking up, when suddenly—BAM. I’m hit with the force of a thousand suns. Not from the east. From someone’s high beams coming straight at me.

And I mean every car. It’s not a couple clueless drivers now and then. It’s a full-on epidemic. At this point, I half-expect someone to roll down their window and yell, “I HAVE THE POWER OF GOD AND HIGH BEAMS ON MY SIDE!”

Let’s be clear: it’s dark on Scenic, but not that dark. I wear glasses. My vision’s not great. But even I can get through that road just fine with my low beams. So why is half the city acting like they need aircraft landing lights to make it up the hill?

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When Should You Use High Beams While Driving in Texas?

Brights, or high beams, aren’t some sort of elite visibility weapon. They’re meant for rural, unlit, empty roads. The kind you’ll find out in the middle of nowhere where there’s no one around to blind.

According to Texas law, you have to dim your brights within 500 feet of oncoming traffic. And yes, Scenic Drive counts. It’s a narrow two-lane road without barriers. If someone’s coming at you, your brights shouldn’t be.

Why Do Drivers Use High Beams in Well-Lit Areas?

But it’s not just Scenic. I’ve seen this behavior everywhere. Brights on Mesa. Brights on I-10. Brights on well-lit city streets where visibility is crystal clear. At that point, it’s not about safety. It’s about ego or just not paying attention.

If your first instinct when you turn on the ignition is to flip your brights on, maybe it’s time to reevaluate how you’re using the road. Just because your car can light up everything in a five-mile radius doesn’t mean it should.

How Using High Beams in the City Endangers Other Drivers

Using your high beams when someone is coming straight at you isn’t a safety measure. It’s inconsiderate. It’s dangerous. And honestly, it feels like some people think they're the only ones on the road.

Here’s a wild idea: be a decent human being. Hit that lever on your steering wheel and turn off the brights when you see someone coming. It’s not hard. And it might just make someone’s miserable early morning commute a little less blinding.

Because the next time someone hits me with their brights on Scenic, I might not just squint and keep driving. I might just roll down my window and ask them if they're trying to interrogate the mountain.