Kangaroos and Driving Lights on Great Southern Roads

This guide is for drivers who regularly travel the country roads around Albany, Mount Barker and Denmark at dawn, dusk or after dark. It explains what driving lights and light bars can and can't do, the WA rules on fitting and using them, how to wire them safely, and a few driving habits that matter more than any light.

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Where you'll meet kangaroos

Once you leave Albany's suburbs, most roads pass through farmland, bush reserves and national parks. Albany Highway heads north through Mount Barker towards Kojonup. Chester Pass Road crosses the Stirling Range. The South Coast Highway runs west through Denmark into the forests and east through open farming country. The Muir Highway leads west from Mount Barker through bush and farmland.

Kangaroos are common along many of these roads, and like most macropods they tend to be most active around dawn and dusk. They often feed on the grass at the road edge, where rain runs off the bitumen and the growth is greener. That puts them right in your path, often in groups, and a kangaroo that has crossed may turn and cross back.

What extra lights can and can't do

Good lighting helps you see an animal sooner, which gives you more time to slow down. Your standard high beams are the starting point. Make sure the headlight lenses are clear, the globes are working and the aim is correct. Faded, yellowed lenses can cut light output noticeably. If a globe has failed or dimmed, see our guide on changing a headlight globe.

Driving lights and light bars add reach and spread on high beam. They don't make a vehicle safe on their own, and they can't help when you have to dip for oncoming traffic. Slowing down at dawn and dusk does more to avoid a collision than any light. Treat extra lights as a help, not a licence to drive faster.

The WA rules on extra driving lights

In Western Australia, the Department of Transport's information bulletin on fitting and using additional and optional vehicle lights (IB-132) covers driving lights and LED light bars. The department's vehicle accessories and fittings page says LED light bars may be fitted to vehicles with four or more wheels, subject to conditions. At the time of writing, the bulletin includes these points:

• Additional driving lights must be front-facing, white and fitted symmetrically, and there is a limit on how many you can fit.
• They must only operate with the high beam, and must switch off when the high beam is off or the headlights are dipped.
• You can't use high beam, or driving lights, when another vehicle is within 200 metres ahead of you, travelling in either direction.
• Lights fitted to a bull bar or nudge bar must not sit above the front edge of the bonnet or stick out past the bar.
• Lights must be securely mounted, mustn't block the driver's view and mustn't cause glare.

Check before you buy

These rules are a summary, and they can change. Read the current bulletin before you buy or fit anything, and check that the light you're considering is designed for road use. Some very bright or oddly coloured lights sold online are intended for off-road use only. The bulletin also covers fog lights, work lights and aftermarket LED or HID headlight conversions, which may make the vehicle modified and need inspection. Work lights, for example, need their own labelled, illuminated switch and must not dazzle other road users.

Wiring driving lights properly

Driving lights draw more current than a headlight switch is designed to handle. They should be wired through a relay that's triggered by the high beam circuit, so they switch off automatically when you dip. A dedicated fuse close to the battery protects the cable, and the cable should be sized for the current and the length of the run.

Most good driving light kits include a harness with a relay, fuse and switch. If you're making your own, our guides on wiring a 12V relay and choosing the right cable size will help. Use sealed connectors, because the front of a vehicle cops rain, road spray and, around Albany, salt air.

If you're not confident, have an auto electrician fit them. A badly wired light bar can overload circuits, cause fires or interfere with other systems.

Mount the lights solidly. Corrugated gravel roads, such as the farm and forest roads off the highways around Mount Barker and Denmark, shake brackets loose and fatigue cables where they flex. Use a sturdy bracket, leave a little slack in the cable near the light, protect it with sleeving where it passes the bull bar and recheck the mounting bolts after the first few trips on rough roads.

Driving habits that matter most

Lights help, but the way you drive matters more. These habits are worth building on Great Southern roads:

• Slow down at dawn and dusk, when kangaroos are most active.
• Scan the road edges, not just the road ahead. Look for eyes reflecting in your lights.
• If you see one kangaroo, expect more.
• Brake firmly in a straight line rather than swerving. Swerving can lead to a rollover or a head-on crash, which is often far worse than hitting the animal.
• Be extra careful when towing. A caravan or boat trailer takes longer to stop and is harder to control in a swerve.

After a collision

If you do hit a kangaroo, pull over safely and switch on your hazard lights. Check your vehicle before driving on, including the headlights, radiator and any wiring behind the bumper or bull bar. Damaged wiring can short out later. Once you're home, have any damaged lights or wiring repaired properly. Our local pages for Mount Barker and Denmark have more on the jobs common in country areas.

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Questions Albany drivers ask

Are LED light bars legal in WA?

The WA Department of Transport says LED light bars may be fitted to vehicles with four or more wheels, subject to conditions. These include working only with high beam and not being used when another vehicle is within 200 metres. Read the current information bulletin IB-132 before you buy or fit one, as the rules can change.

Do driving lights help avoid kangaroos?

They can help you see an animal sooner on high beam, giving you more time to brake. But you have to dip them for other traffic, and they don't stop a kangaroo jumping out. Slowing down at dawn and dusk, scanning the road edges and braking in a straight line matter more.

Can I wire driving lights straight to my headlight switch?

It's not a good idea. Driving lights draw more current than most headlight switches and wiring are built for. Use a relay triggered by the high beam circuit, a fuse near the battery and suitably sized cable. Most driving light kits include a harness that does this properly.

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