Plans are being drawn up to equip all new electric cars with new green headlights. The scheme, which is part of a Europe-wide drive to highlight the number of electric cars on the roads, will see the traditional red tail lights and white front lights make way for next-generation green LEDs that will have the added benefit of using a special night vision technology.
Green is the new red
Under the plan, which is expected to become law across the EU and in the UK by 2023, all new electric cars will be required to leave the factory with headlights and tail lights that emit a green hue. To ensure compliance across the industry, all manufacturers will be required to Pantone match the green to 7481C.
Commenting on the plan, Eloda Raubissh, Head of implementation at the department of Joint Operations & Kinematics Europe said: “Red lights are traditionally associated with things that stop or go wrong. We think green is a more positive colour. We know that some drivers may be confused by having both rear and front lights the same colour, so the scheme will be launched with a pan-European ad campaign. The message we want to get across is that a green light getting bigger is a car coming towards you, a green light getting smaller is a car going away from you.”
The move marks the first change away from traditional white and red lights since the colours were standardised in 1895. Originally patented by British inventor, Sir Cecil Headlight in 1893, the traditional white front / red rear layout was chosen at the time because green lights were reserved for members of the royal family and architects.
Green rear lights mark the first major change in car lighting regulations for more than a century 
