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Glow-in-the dark costumes and glow sticks have made Halloween trick-or-treating safer for children because they can be seen at night. Glow-in-the dark road lines operate the same way by making it easier for drivers to see the road.
Anyone who drives at night knows how difficult it is to see road markings, especially in inclement weather, because the paint has faded or the road has recently been repaved, according to Auto Evolution.
A trial run using photoluminescence highway lines – that’s the process that makes toys and watches glow – in Victoria, Australia began in May 2022 and the results have been glowing, reported News.com. It is part of a three -section innovative project from Regional Roads Victoria to make roads safer.
“This treatment will make it easier for drivers to see the line markings or signage and provide stronger definition coming up to intersections and curves, giving drivers more time to react and preventing them from veering from their lane,” according to the Regional Roads website.
Glowing Roads
The Grippsland company Tarmac Linemarking used photoluminescence technology to coat the road markings at 70 locations including one kilometer of Metong Road in Victoria during the trial, according to News.com. At night, the coating emits light that was stored during the daytime so that drivers can see them. While foggy weather may affect the lights longevity, the roadways will be bright during the dangerous dusk period.
“There’s been a lot of interest since the trial run, it’s a great product,” John Emanuelli from Tarmac Linemarking told News.com. Photos from the company’s Facebook page have gone viral and was shared more than 1,000 times. He added that there are other useful applications for this technology including parking lots and boat ramps.
Other Safety Improvements
Other road markings will be more reflective, even if they don’t glow-in-the dark, Auto Evolution reported. This is accomplished by adding glass beads and thermoplastic to the road paint. This makes the markings much more visible.
The last measure will be the use of LED tactile paving at some pedestrian crossings. These lights have the same colors of traffic lights to get walkers to pay more attention to them. Especially since many pedestrians are paying more attention to their smartphones than to the road.
Regional Roads is certainly on the right path to making the streets of Victoria safer for drivers, cyclists, and walkers. It is a giant step in the right direction.
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