The Lights That Keep You Safe

From our urban infrastructures to the devices in our pockets, lighting can help us live safer lives.

The global pandemic has changed the way we think about and interact with our urban spaces. Our streets may look emptier than usual, but the trend towards increasingly dense urban living is centuries old. By 2050, 70% of us will make our homes in cities.

Our cities also suffer something of a perception problem. Did you know that in the USA, it’s actually safer to live in a city than in a rural area? Of course, there are many variables at play, but some factors include better coverage from emergency services, our perception of social surveillance, and how (and how much) we choose to drive. That perception of safety extends to the way we interpret light. Studies differ in their conclusions about the effects of light on street crime, but it’s true that well-lit streets make us feel safer and signal that a neighbourhood offers a high degree of visibility – and is well cared for.

And street lighting helps pedestrians move safely through areas that are shared with cars, bicycles, and public transport. A 2009 Cochrane review concluded that improved street lighting could prevent road traffic crashes, injuries and fatalities. Drivers can see better and are more able to perceive hazards, including in areas like tunnels, reducing night-time traffic accidents.

Urban lighting becomes even more powerful when it’s connected. Through systems like Signify’s Interact City platform, municipalities can control lights together, in groups, or individually from a central dashboard. Faults and outages can immediately be detected, reducing downtime. And it’s easy to make quick adjustments; for example, increasing light levels to help first responders at the scene of an accident, or dimming lights in unused and empty areas.

With a base of connected lighting controlled by Interact City, municipalities can add extra features over time, like noise or incident detection sensors mounted on the same poles. These sensitive sensors continually monitor the surrounding conditions and alert emergency services when there’s an unexpected change to traffic, sounds, or crowd noise.

The electricity saving from LED and connected systems make a large infrastructure project of this sort very viable, and reducing consumption has a positive environmental impact.
Perhaps the most advantageous component, however, is how the system, when integrated with innovative lighting fixtures and poles like the BrightSites Smartpole, advances digital opportunities and the ‘Internet of Things’ (IoT) network. These streetlamps have the potential to house 5G and Wi-Fi connectivity, remote-controlled billboards, CCTV, and microphones capable of detecting sudden loud noises which can be quickly investigated. Nodes and sensors can provide data-based insight into electricity usage, noise pollution, as well as traffic. The light’s brightness can also be controlled to adapt to nearby activity.

A study by Signify and the World Council on City Data found that achieving the right street lighting level helps to reduce traffic accidents, deters crime, fosters community identity, encourages crowds to disperse and helps people to feel safer on their streets. Interestingly, night-time traffic accounts for 25% of traffic volume but 40% of all accidents. The addition of good quality lighting can help to reduce accidents involving personal injuries by up to 30%.

And for the balance sheets of local municipalities, using Interact City makes much sense. Infrastructure needs only to be revamped, rather than renewed, running and maintenance costs are lowered, and additional income can be gained through monetizing and renting out the pole’s housing to telecommunication companies or those looking to advertise on the fixture’s billboard.

City landmarks can also benefit from a smart city makeover. Even the most drab monuments can be completely transformed by subtle colorful light – displays that can be customized to special events and holidays by the swipe of a screen app. What’s more, the benefits to local communities can be profound. Inner city areas can be regenerated, and cities become more livable and attractive to tourists.

Built environments – roads, streets, facades – need to be fit for purpose for the digital age. Smart cities, once dreamed about are rapidly becoming reality with lighting networks coming to the fore as a vehicle for reducing electricity consumption while delivering smart city services. As policy makers sharpen their post-pandemic recovery plans, now is the perfect time for lighting to have a seat at the top table.

SIGNIFY INTERNATIONAL B.V. OGRANAK BEOGRAD

Interact City

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