Useeme Turnin’ – The Automatic Wearable Bicycle Turn Signal

ALL signals should be made with your left arm. If you are following the rules of the road (US roads anyway) then you should be on the far right of any given roadway with traffic passing you on your left. Using your left arm allows any approaching driver to see your hand signals without obstruction.

@JMG DC: You’re right, it makes no sense, but the “left arm up to indicate right turn” has been promoted as the right thing to do since I was a wee lad. I see lots of cyclists in their 40s and 50s use it religiously. Maybe it was promoted in the 60s and 70s?
I also see roadies using the hand-flick [or the elbow point] to indicate the direction of travel, as if they were in a paceline. I don’t think they know that drivers a) can’t see that and b) typically aren’t familiar with paceline etiquette. Personally, I use the “point where I’m going” technique. Works great.

Left arm signalling is based on motorcycles as well — throttle and bake are on the right hand.

I’ve always used the left hand to signal a right turn, unless I’m in a left lane wanting to move right, in which case I use my right hand (like when I’ve made a left into a left turn lane and need to move over to get to the right hand side).

Hand Signals

22111. All required signals given by hand and arm shall be given from the left side of a vehicle in the following manner:

(a) Left turn-hand and arm extended horizontally beyond the side of the vehicle.

(b) Right turn-hand and arm extended upward beyond the side of the vehicle, except that a bicyclist may extend the right hand and arm horizontally to the right side of the bicycle.

(c) Stop or sudden decrease of speed signal-hand and arm extended downward beyond the side of the vehicle.

Nit Ize makes LED SLAP bracelets for $10 a pop which solve this same problem cheaper. You just need your hands to be seen in the dark, Nite Ize SlapLit LED Bracelet does that, and has some passive reflectivity too in case of drivers headlights overpowering the LED.

Even if it weren’t legal (it is here in WA), I’d still point the direction I plan to turn. Left arm raised up at a 45 degree angle is either “hello” or “stop!”, depending on how stupid the driver is unless they’re a motorcyclist, cyclist or learned to drive in the 40s. With regards to the “can’t see the right arm if there’s more than 2 cyclists” … and you can see the left had of the rider at the front? This is why everyone should signal, not just the leader of the pack.

And as for this kickstarter wearable turn signal, I’m split. On one hand, anything that gets me noticed is good. But on the other hand, I don’t want drivers to get used to looking for wearable turn signals because if I’m NOT wearing one and get hit, I can see the driver’s insurance going after that as proximate cause for the driver’s confusion and the subsequent collision. More lights than the legally required lights aren’t always better. Case in point: in WA, the law says “A lamp emitting a red light visible… may be used in addition to the red reflector.” I’ve heard of insurance attorneys going after cyclists for having more than one blinky light since the law clearly says “a” (singular) under the pretense that more than one flashing LED blinky disoriented the driver and caused the collision. Since Washington state law doesn’t provide for cyclists to have a turn signal, I can see the weasels latching onto these wristbands as a “cause” of the collision.

Zach Overholt is correct for most states. Most states adopt federal law in this regard unless strictly stating otherwise. In those states that state otherwise there is usually an exception or amendment made to the Reserve Statute or Code that refers to the motorist (bicyclist) being able to use the right hand ONLY to indicate a right hand turn.

However, this does not have anything to do with the competency of the drivers around your nor their attentiveness (or lack-there-of). Last Friday (the 6th) I was almost hit twice by drivers that were not paying attention (either playing on their phones, speeding, having conversations with their passenger and just pulling into traffic. I have pretty much given up on using hand signals unless there is more than one vehicle in motion around me. I have been cussed out by people because I have my hand up (indicating right turn) and made the right turn only to have them wanting to make a left turn from where I was going, cussed out by people that have not noticed me signaling that I was pulling into the lane from the bike path to subsequently make a left turn, etc. Even had a guy cut all the way across traffic to get ahead of me to turn into a bar, only to completely cut me off to the point where hand I not put my hand out and slammed the side of his van with my fist he would have hit me.

Of course these people are completely oblivious to the world around them most of the time and yet we are the one’s who are called “Sprocket Jockeys” and that we (cyclists) need to understand “that they have to control a 1ton+ vehicle and that is not easy” (this was literally said in a defensive driving class that all state workers are required to take).

Fact of the matter, this product does not look like it will emit enough light in the day time to signal anything. Plus when attempting to use this as recourse in a court of law you will be laughed at by your lawyer if not the prosecution and the judge presiding. Be aware of your surroundings, always anticipate the person in the vehicle DOES NOT see you and only make the moves necessary to ensure your own safety (you are considered a vehicle so if you stop in traffic to make a turn, the traffic behind you must stop as well).

Motion sensor detects your hand movement and switches the LEDs on when needed.”

Who cares how you signal – left arm or right arm – I wouldn’t want this thing flashing when I reach for my water bottle or my phone.

Those LED’s look piss weak.
I’ll stick with my home made slap wrist band with 3M reflective taped on – never runs out of batteries.

In the Bicycle portion, the Colorado Driver Handbook shows that you can use either arm for a right turn, but I can’t imagine anyone is going to know what you are signaling with your right arm bent at the elbow and sticking up in the air.

At least sticking your right arm straight out for a right turn makes sense, but that’s not what they show in the manual.

Event though they show the hand signals for cars (all with the left arm of course), I find it odd that they make absolutely no mention of hand signals in the motorcycle handbook.

I switched to signaling a right by pointing to the right after several instances in which I signaled a right turn with my the left arm, hand upward… and drivers waived ‘hello’ at me!

Left arm up for a right turn on a bike is totally stupid. Many drivers thought that I was either turning left or flipping them off.

And most of the time I do not see cars signal with their lights (or hands) right or left at intersections, they just go.

Hey there, I work on this project and I’m happy to report that we’re now actually selling the product. It improved a lot since our Indiegogo campaign and we honestly think it’s the best turn signal solution for cyclists ever built.
See https://useeme.bike/en for details.
I’d love to send you guys a pair for a proper review.