Free independent reference. Original examples, not official exam questions or a practical driving assessment. Follow current provincial rules and vehicle instructions.
Night and adverse driving conditions →Keep your response focused on seeing
A bright oncoming vehicle can make the scene harder to read. The handbook’s response concerns your own beam setting, speed and line of sight. It does not recommend switching to high beams to punish the other driver.
Looking slightly toward the right helps avoid staring directly into the lights. Continue observing the road ahead and use its edge as a guide; this does not mean fixing your eyes on one nearby point or abandoning an active safety scan.
Source: Nova Scotia Driver’s Handbook — §5.2.1 ↗Choose speed for the visible conditions
Darkness makes hazards harder to see. The handbook calls for a speed that suits the conditions and gives control. Reduced visibility, fatigue and possible wildlife all matter even when a posted limit has not changed.
On an open road the handbook describes high beams when there is no conflicting following or approaching traffic. City driving uses low beams. The separate headlight-distance reference explains the specific dimming distances; this page focuses on the glare response.
Source: Nova Scotia Driver’s Handbook — §5.2.1 ↗Apply the rule in original cases
Original learning cases
An approaching driver leaves high beams on. Keep yours low and reduce speed rather than answering with another source of glare.
You look directly at the bright lights to judge how close the car is. The handbook instead advises looking slightly right and using the road edge as a guide.
The oncoming vehicle has passed, but you are now staring at a single point ahead. Return to active observation; the end of the glare has not checked the rest of the road.
Keep scanning after the vehicle passes
Do not let one pair of bright lights occupy all your attention. Continue checking the changing road scene and the areas where a hazard may develop. A darker road after an oncoming car passes still requires an appropriate speed.
If tiredness develops, treat it as a separate fitness issue rather than merely another lighting problem. The linked fatigue material explains why staring ahead and continuing because the road looks empty are poor substitutes for being alert.
Source: Nova Scotia Driver’s Handbook — §5.2.1 ↗