Night Driving With High Beams and a Deer
You are driving alone at night on a dark two-lane highway with no streetlights. You have your high beams on because there is no oncoming traffic. Ahead, you see the reflective eyeshine of a deer at the right edge of your lane, about 150 feet away, standing partly in the road. The speed limit is 55 mph and you are traveling at that speed. The road has a narrow gravel shoulder and a ditch beyond it.
1. What is the correct immediate response, and why is swerving a poor choice?
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Brake firmly and steer straight within your lane while reducing speed as much as possible. Swerving at highway speed risks losing control, entering the ditch, or crossing into oncoming traffic, and it may put you in the path of the animal or a second deer. A controlled, straight-line stop in your own lane is the safest option. Keep your high beams on to see the animal and any others nearby - deer often travel in groups.
2. After the deer moves off, what should you do about your high beams, and what else should you watch for?
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Once the deer clears, continue scanning - more deer may follow, and eyeshine at the road edges signals them. Keep high beams on only while no oncoming or leading traffic would be blinded; dim them when a vehicle approaches from ahead or when following another car closely. Slow down for the remaining stretch, since nighttime sight distance at 55 mph may be shorter than your stopping distance, and watch the shoulders and ditch line for movement.