By Farah Mokrani • Published: 29 Jan 2026 • 11:21 • 2 minutes readV16 warning beacons have come under scrutiny during snow and extreme cold. It also exposed another weak point in the country’s new V16 emergency warning beacons, now mandatory since 1 January. Regulations state that V16 beacons must operate continuously for at least 30 minutes and have a minimum lifespan of 18 months. Authorities have also shifted from saying the beacons would replace triangles to calling them complementary. In the very conditions where warning devices matter most – snow, cold, poor visibility – the V16 beacon appears to be at its weakest.