The following is a guest article by Alexander Gonzales and Austin Gae.
Of all the changes that could be made in the name of fighting climate change, it’s hard to imagine something more hazardous than making streets darker at night. Yet that’s exactly what the U.K. is about to do.
Although only one-quarter of travel by car occurs between 7 p.m. and 8 a.m., 40% of crashes with fatal or serious injuries occur in this time frame, according to Britain’s Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents. This percentage would be higher if not for streetlamps that increase visibility for both pedestrians and drivers, reducing the risk of nighttime crashes.
Despite this, the U.K. intends to remove up to 1.5 million lampposts, replacing them with dimmer lighting alternatives.
Why? It’s part of Britain’s broader efforts to cut carbon emissions by 81% from 1990 levels by 2035, a goal announced last month by Labor Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
A pilot project in Yorkshire, part of a $38 million decarbonization initiative led by the Department for Transport, may shape the future of road visibility in Britain. The trial involves removing hundreds of streetlamps on two major roads and replacing them with road studs, bollards with integrated lighting and footway lighting.
While the switch from streetlamps to dimmer lighting alternatives will avoid complete darkness, it will still lead to reduced illumination on the roads, diminishing visibility for drivers and increasing the risk of nighttime crashes. A Dutch study on the effects of road lighting found that poor road lighting is strongly associated with higher crash rates.
Human vision worsens at night, making it harder to perceive depth, contrast and movement. This is especially concerning for older people, whose age-related conditions such as cataracts impair their ability to navigate dimly light environments.
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