5.3 Cycling and Public Lighting
Public lighting improves the safety, comfort and security of all road users, including cyclists. It is an essential requirement for urban commuting during winter months.
Unlike motorised vehicles, bicycle headlamps will not illuminate the route. Their design purpose is primarily to alert other road users to the presence of the cyclist. Cyclists are dependent on ambient or public lighting to see where they are going.
Under the 1993 Roads Act (Section 13, Part 2), local authorities are statutorily required to maintain public roads, including cycle ways and cycle tracks. The provision and maintenance of public lighting facilities form part of this requirement.
Public lighting should always be considered as part of the Road Design and Road Safety Audit processes.
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5.3.1 Design Objectives
Well-designed public lighting increases the attractiveness of the route and gives the cyclist a greater sense of security. It can also increase the accessibility and utility of the route.
Street lighting helps cyclists to see potential hazards such as street furniture, gullies, broken glass etc, but also to see other road users.
Street lighting should meet the following basic requirements:
- Illuminate the route ahead
- Illuminate the road surfaces
- Illuminate junctions, access points and conflict points etc
- Illuminate obstacles and other users along the route
Street lighting needs to be maintained in order to ensure these objectives are met. Regular inspections during hours of darkness should be carried out to identify and replace faulty lanterns, and a fault reporting system should be available to the public
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5.3.2 Codes of Practice and Reference Guidelines
The design, installation and maintenance of public lighting measures should be carried out in accordance with the Codes of Practice and reference guidelines listed below. Any proposed derivations should be subject to consultation with, and agreement by, the relevant Local Authority Public Lighting Department.
BS 5489-1:2003 Code of practice for the design of road lighting
I.S. EN 13201-2:2003 Road Lighting
ILE TR 23 – Institute of Lighting Engineers, Technical Report 23
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5.3.3 Key Issues to be Considered
This section provides detail design advice in relation to the appropriate selection of light fittings, lighting levels, the correct positioning of street lighting and ensuring the safety of users.
5.3.3.1 Road/Street Category
The height of lighting column to be provided will depend on the type of road, e.g. whether it is a Distributor, Local Collector or Access road.
Generally, bus routes and distributor or higher-order collector routes benefit from higher lighting columns, while residential areas benefit from lower lighting columns.
5.3.3.2 Design Speed of Cyclists
The design speed is directly proportional to the stopping sight distance.
Lighting in urban areas must allow a minimum cycling sight distance of between 20 metres to 40 metres, preferably towards the upper limit. This will cater for the majority of cyclists.
5.3.3.3 Locating Lighting Columns
Care should be taken to avoid creating an obstruction for cyclists or pedestrians when positioning lighting columns at the edge of the roadway. A minimum clearance of 0.5m between the lighting column and cycle lane or track is recommended.
If there is no verge outside the footpath to locate the lighting column, the column should be located to the back of the footpath, and adjusted if necessary to deliver the lighting levels attributed to the carriageway.
Public lighting columns should be relocated at an early stage in a retrofit project to allow for a smooth finish of pavements around the lighting column.
Vertical clearance to allow for maintenance and other access requirements should be a minimum of 4.0 metres.In certain circumstances, e.g. for bridges and parapets, the use of deck, parapet or other non-column mounted lighting may be more appropriate.
Care should be taken not to locate lighting columns close to tress that may obstruct the light.
5.3.3.4 Strength and Uniformity of Lighting
Strength of LightingStreet lighting should give enough light to enable all road users, including cyclists, to see each other, as well as objects on or next to the road, at a reasonable distance.
The strength of lighting required will differ depending on the road type and prevailing traffic regime. BS 5489 calls for an average luminance of 10 Lux and a minimum luminance of 5 Lux for Footpaths and Cycle Paths
The quality of light is improved by using brighter colours of road surface that reflect more light.
Street lighting in urban areas should be sufficient to allow motorists to use dipped headlights. This will reduce the risk of cyclists being dazzled by full beam headlights.Uniformity of Lighting
On major roads the lowest light intensity on the road surface should be at least 30% of the highest light intensity. On lower-order roads, a corresponding low-high ratio of 15-20% may be adopted.The adjustable parameters to achieve more uniform lighting are:
- distance between the street lamps
- height of the street lamps
- quality of the bulbs
- quality of the optical system used in the fittings
Further guidance is provided in the table below.
5.3.3.5 Dependence on Carriageway Lighting
In addition to normal street lighting, specific cycle track lighting may be required:- where a cycle track is located more than 2.0m from the carriageway
- where there are sudden bends or corners on an unlit cycle track
- at the point where a cycle track diverges from the carriageway
Designers need also to be aware of possible light pollution in environmentally sensitive areas.
Crossings must be well-lit to highlight pedestrians and cyclists both approaching and using the crossing if the general carriageway lighting is insufficient. Additional lighting at both sides of the crossing may be required to achieve this.
5.3.3.6 Lighting and Safety at Isolated Locations
Outside of built-up areas, recreational routes will not normally require lighting unless there are specific road safety concerns, e.g. at junctions or crossings.
Underpasses require special attention to address a perceived sense of reduced personal safety for pedestrians and cyclists. Underpasses should be provided with a minimum level of 30 Lux unless a CCTV system requires a higher level.