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Functions of street lighting

The British Department of Transport report summarizes the functions of street lighting into four categories:

(1) Convenience and safety of pedestrians and vehicles.

(2) The needs of traffic police.

(3) Convenience of residents.

(4) Special needs of commercial areas and major city centers.

The British Department of Transport report divides roads into two categories.

Lighting on "Class A" roads must ensure safety needs, and except in foggy days, it is not necessary to turn on the headlights. On other "Class B" roads, the lighting level can be lower, and it is generally assumed that headlights will be used. There are also obvious differences in the regulations for the installation height of street lights on Class 4 and Class B roads: Class 4 street lights are about 8 meters; Class B is about 5 meters or lower. Originally, the height was intended to be used as a sign of whether the driver needs to use headlights, but at present, even the lighting level of Class 4 roads rarely reaches the standard where headlights can be turned on. Now drivers have taken it as their responsibility to turn on headlights when necessary. In recent years, except for some of the best-lit streets, headlights are required to be turned on, and it is stipulated that all streets without proper lighting must turn on headlights after the lighting time. However, it is not advisable to turn on the headlights when driving on city streets, because the brightness contrast will cause the driver to see the target in shadow. More importantly, due to the terrain of the road and the movement of vehicles, the light from the headlights to other drivers is too strong. This is especially dangerous when some drivers use low beams while other drivers use headlights. Therefore, the lighting facilities on streets with heavy traffic must adapt to this situation, that is, they must ensure that drivers can see the road and obstacles ahead normally without using headlights.

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