Written by Steve Harriman, Senior Director of Business Development
Good lighting will not result from simply replacing the existing light with its LED equivalent. LED streetlight technology simply doesn’t work like old HID technology. LED streetlights project highly focused rays of light downwards only, using prisms and lenses that distribute the light in precise patterns, like a footprint. Increasing the wattage will make the area within the footprint brighter but it won’t make it bigger, nor will the area outside the footprint become brighter.
By implementing a proper photometric lighting design strategy, you can get the light exactly where you want it. Lighting design considers a host of factors that are specific to each location such as fixture height, pole spacing, road width, sidewalks and setbacks, roadway classifications, and more.
What is Photometric Lighting Design?
Comprehensive photometric lighting design combines brightness control, shadow management, and precise placement of luminaires with the goal of using the least wattage possible to provide adequate illumination. This approach requires careful planning and analysis but can deliver significant rewards when properly implemented – allowing local governments to achieve maximum energy savings while still meeting their safety goals.
By considering factors such as terrain, population density, area size, and weather conditions, it's possible to create a customized plan that provides safe levels of illumination while keeping energy consumption at a minimum.
Why Is Proper Lighting Design Important?
There are many critical advantages to incorporating lighting design into your plans when acquiring and upgrading your streetlights. Like what? Well, proper lighting design prevents light trespass, improves pedestrian safety and visibility, maximizes energy savings, reduces resident complaints, and enhances aesthetic appeal. Let’s take a look at some of these points in detail.
Prevent Glare, Up-light Light Trespass
Custom lighting designs are becoming increasingly popular when upgrading streetlights due to their ability to prevent glare and up-light light trespass. Glare is an issue for many cities, as it causes discomfort for people who live nearby and makes it difficult for drivers to see the road safely at night. Up-lighting light trespass can also cause problems, as it can shine through windows of nearby homes and cause disturbances.
Fortunately, lighting designs are helping cities and towns address these issues. By taking into account factors like roadway geometries, population density, topography, land use patterns and visibility requirements when designing lighting systems, custom lighting designs ensure that light is directed only where needed while still providing adequate illumination on streets and sidewalks. This helps prevent both glare and up-light light trespass so that streets remain safe while also providing a comfortable environment for those living in the area.
Improve Safety & Visibility for Pedestrians
Typical streetlights provide a uniform coverage across an area but they do not always provide enough light when it comes to intricate details such as paths or walkways. Custom lighting design can be used in these instances to effectively increase safety by providing additional illumination for pedestrians and motorists.
High-quality lighting can prevent accidents by serving drivers and offering protection to otherwise unprotected pedestrians and cyclists. Quality lighting design on roads at night is critical to provide adequate visual acuity for the driver of a vehicle and pedestrians. This enables an individual to detect the movement of other vehicles and pedestrians. Good lighting on streets and sidewalks also enhances the feeling of personal safety for pedestrians. Street lighting in newer neighborhoods was likely designed with this in mind—but in older neighborhoods and rural areas, this is usually not the case as lights would have been put on existing utility poles.
Custom lighting designs ensure that areas are well-lit increasing visibility and therefore safety for pedestrians. Both pedestrians and motorists will be able to see much further into the distance, gaining greater visual acuity to prevent potential accidents and hazards.
Maximize Energy Savings
Comprehensive photometric lighting design also can achieve maximum energy savings by using the least amount of wattage possible. It helps to maximize energy efficiency and reduce costs by ensuring the perfect amount of light is used in a given area. Streetlights are often one of the largest sources of energy use in cities, so understanding proper photometric lighting can lead to significant savings for municipalities and local governments. For example, properly designed parking lots will only use enough wattage to provide necessary visibility while avoiding excess luminescence that could otherwise go unused.
To learn more, read our white paper about the connection between photometric design and energy savings.
Reduce Resident Complaints
A common complaint cities and towns face when installing new streetlights is light trespass negatively impacting its residents. The importance of light trespass is a matter of concern for residents who live near or next to the streetlights. Light trespass can be defined as “the unwanted light that spills out and shines in through windows, doors, porches, and other openings onto residential land”.It includes both the direct light that shines through the windows and doors of a house as well as the reflected light from streets, roofs, or other surfaces.
With proper lighting design, streetlights can be created in a way that allows the residents to live more comfortably with less light trespass, leading to fewer complaints. RTE designs for each unique street so that we get the correct light distribution pattern onto the roadway as opposed to into residential and commercial windows.
Enhance your Community’s Curb Appeal
Thoughtful lighting design can have a huge impact on the curb appeal of any space to increase overall visits and grow popularity of an area. Lighting design should be carefully considered as part of any plan to improve the appearance and utility of a public space. The right lighting design will have a major effect on how residents perceive the look and feel of their surroundings. There are plenty of options available that can add a unique flair to the streetscape while ensuring all desired areas are properly lit.
Proper lighting design is an important and often overlooked aspect of urban planning. Streetlights are a large part of that; they provide illumination to dark streets and can create a safer environment for pedestrians. There are many advantages to having a lighting design strategy in place, including preventing light trespass, increasing pedestrian safety, maximizing energy savings, and improving residents’ experience and overall landscape aesthetics.
Have Lighting Design Needs? RTE is Here to Help!
Our in-house lighting design team has worked on over 350 municipal lighting design projects with the goal of meeting all client concerns and needs. We have addressed almost every situation under the sun thanks to our vast experience and we are confident we can provide a solution that best fits your community.
We work closely with you and your department to ensure that all questions are answered, and any concerns are addressed. Our turnkey LED streetlight conversion approach entails an in-depth streetlight audit, comprehensive lighting design, equipment evaluation, procurement, installation, and maintenance, so you can save valuable time and resources.
Feel free to reach out to me to schedule your free consultation and discover what proper lighting design can do for your city or town.
About the Author: Meet Steve
Steve is a business development professional with 20 years of proven experience in business development, client satisfaction, and customer retention. He was previously Sales Director for Cyclone Lighting in Ontario and also worked at King Luminaire and Stresscrete Group, where he served as Sales Manager for the U.S. Northeast. Prior to working in the lighting Industry, Steve was a C.P.G.A. Golf Club Professional with Professional roles at Royal Niagara, Carlisle, Pine Knot and Sunningdale Golf & Country Club. Book a meeting with Steve.