Here in the UK, our roads offer a fascinating variety – from the bustling, intricate lanes of our historic cities to the sweeping, high-speed stretches of the M1 or A1. And just as you adjust your driving style for these different environments, so too should you consider how to get the very best out of your TARGET Blu Eye 2 traffic safety system.
While the Blu Eye 2 is brilliantly intuitive, understanding its modes and how they relate to your driving conditions can significantly enhance its performance and your overall road awareness. Let’s delve into how to optimise your trusty co-pilot, whether you’re navigating urban jungles or cruising the open road.
Understanding the Modes: City vs. Highway
The TARGET Blu Eye 2 is typically equipped with different sensitivity settings, often referred to as ‘City’ and ‘Highway’ (or similar). These modes aren’t just fancy labels; they’re designed to fine-tune the system’s detection capabilities for the specific challenges of each driving environment.
- City Mode: Navigating the Urban Maze
Driving in a city is a sensory overload. You’ve got traffic lights, pedestrians, cyclists, parked cars, and a multitude of radio signals bouncing around. Emergency services are constantly on the move, often at lower speeds, and can be easily obscured by buildings or other vehicles.
Why City Mode is Your Best Mate Here:
- Reduced False Alerts: In densely populated areas, there’s a higher chance of picking up weaker, peripheral radio signals that aren’t necessarily from an immediate threat. City Mode intelligently filters out these weaker, more distant signals, ensuring that you only receive relevant alerts. This prevents the system from becoming a distraction rather than a help.
- Focus on Immediate Proximity: This mode is calibrated to give you timely warnings for emergency vehicles that are genuinely close by, perhaps just around the corner or a few streets away, allowing you to react safely to vehicles emerging from side roads or approaching through heavy traffic.
- Enhanced Urban Awareness: When an ambulance is heading down a busy high street, or a police car needs to navigate narrow residential roads, City Mode ensures you get the heads-up without being overwhelmed by every distant radio transmission.
When to Use It: Primarily for urban driving, town centres, suburban areas with frequent stops and starts, and indeed anywhere with a lot of buildings and infrastructure that might reflect or block signals.
- Highway (Motorway) Mode: The Open Road Advantage
Motorways and open A-roads are a different beast entirely. Speeds are higher, traffic is generally flowing more freely, and you often have much longer lines of sight. Emergency vehicles here might be travelling at high speeds, and early warning is absolutely crucial to allow you sufficient time to react safely and move over.
Why Highway Mode is Indispensable Here:
- Maximum Detection Range: On the open road, the Blu Eye 2 can truly stretch its legs. Highway Mode maximises the system’s sensitivity, allowing it to detect emergency vehicle signals from much further away. This translates into vital extra seconds – or even minutes – of warning.
- High-Speed Preparedness: At 70 mph, every second counts. Knowing an emergency vehicle is approaching a mile or two down the road gives you ample time to check your mirrors, signal, and smoothly transition into another lane, ensuring a clear path for them.
- Uninterrupted Awareness: With fewer obstructions, the signals can travel further and more clearly. Highway Mode capitalises on this, providing consistent, reliable alerts that give you advanced notice of approaching emergency services, even those out of sight over hills or around sweeping bends.
When to Use It: Ideal for motorways, dual carriageways, and open rural roads where speeds are higher and there are fewer immediate obstructions.
Making the Switch: A Seamless Experience
Changing between modes on your TARGET Blu Eye 2 is typically a straightforward process, often involving a simple button press on the main unit or through a connected interface. It’s designed to be quick and easy, allowing you to adapt on the fly as your journey takes you from city streets to the open road and back again.
Our Top Tip: Make it a habit! Just as you might adjust your headlights from dipped to full beam, or switch on your wipers, consider your Blu Eye 2 mode as an integral part of preparing for the road ahead. A quick glance at your sat-nav or route map can help you anticipate the change in driving environment.
True Road Safety, Tailored to You
The TARGET Blu Eye 2 is an incredibly powerful tool for enhancing road safety. By understanding and utilising its ‘City’ and ‘Highway’ modes effectively, you’re not just reacting to emergencies; you’re anticipating them. This proactive approach gives you the time and space needed to ensure a calm, safe reaction for yourself, your passengers, and crucially, for our emergency service heroes who are trying to reach those in need.
Get the most from your investment. Drive smart, drive safe, and optimise your TARGET Blu Eye 2 for every single mile.
