Beacon’s Dummy Light was hit again, this time on Thanksgiving morning at around 11:30am. Witnesses told A Little Beacon Blog that the sun glare at that hour could have played a factor. “I saw this one today outside my window. Either it was the glare from the sun or they just didn’t see it,” said photographer Meghan Spiro, a famed food photographer here. “I couldn’t get a decent photo from my place (looking in the same direction) because of the glare.”

At her bridal shop on the opposite side of the street, realtor Charlotte Guernsey told A Little Beacon Blog: “I saw two in a row the other week, all three of these going the same direction. Must be something about the glare, also they were same time of day.”

ALBB took a photo at 10:30am the next day from the direction of where the cars driving from before hitting the Dummy Light when they turn left. There are at least three factors to consider from the photo:

The photo shows the Dummy Light in the shadow of the renovated factory building at 1 East Main Street.
The Dummy Light is super dark Adirondack green [correction: this article first said black], from its base to the light itself, with only one strip of a yellow argyle pattern on it to make it noticeable to drivers. After the light was knocked completely over by a City of Beacon Highway Department truck during milling and paving of Main Street, at which time a dunce cap was placed on it, reflective squares were added to the argyle pattern.
The black pavement. Now that roads are getting repaved, the streets are very black. Which looks nice, but there is a reflection coming off the pavement. Driving down recently paved Church street at 8am toward the mountain is effectively blinding through the dashboard.

The fatal left turn in December 2021 that took the life of a Beaconite’s grandmother at the intersection of Teller Avenue and Fishkill Avenue also involved the glare of the sun.

Solutions To Reduce Car Crashes Into The Dummy Light

THe Beacon Dummy Light, when it was yellow in the 1990s. In black, at the base, it reads “KEEP RIGHT”
Photo Credit: Stephen Burns

Does the light need to be painted bright yellow, from the base to the light? Cross-walk signs are yellow, and some have blinking yellow lights and reflective tape. Crossing guards wear yellow vests. The Beacon Highway Department wears bright yellow sweatshirts. Should the Dummy Light be treated with the same safety courtesy?

Citizen Stephen Burns supplied this photo of the Dummy Light from the 1990s, when it was yellow, with KEEP RIGHT painted in black on the base. Some people erroneously drive to the left of it.