Intelligent pedestrian and bicycle path lighting in the Netherlands

The European laws have required the use of “bat-friendly” lights in many areas for years already. This means that the colour temperature needs to be adjustable in accordance to the time of day, in order to not disturb the protected bat population. However, much more has been done in this project. The premise here was to combine modern lighting technologies, and to implement lighting in such a way that energy consumption, environmental protection and the optimal amount and quality of light all go hand in hand.

Lumous has delivered VP1011i Natura luminaires to the project, which enable both the luminosity and the color temperature to be adjusted. It is possible to adjust the color temperature between 1800K and 4000K, allowing use of the natural amber shades, as well as both 3000K and 4000K which are generally used in street lighting. In this way, light nuisance can be minimized while at the same time ensuring that moving on the road is always safe.

The lighting control nodes are used to detect road users and to command the luminaires to provide more light with higher colour temperatures, but only momentarily when there is traffic. When brighter lighting is not necessary, the luminaires automatically return to amber and reduce the light output, saving energy and reducing the strain on the protected animal population.

In some other Lumous’ Dutch projects, for example in Thorn, solar panels are installed on top of the poles and a battery pack is included to cut the energy consumption even more. With a combination of new LED-, lighting control-, battery- and solar technologies it is possible in some locations to even provide sufficient lighting solely on solar power.

With multiple similar interesting and successful projects completed in the Netherlands we look forward to continuation. We also hope to get into some pioneering street and area lighting projects here in Finland, where many of the industry’s latest technologies are still almost unused. Lumous has always strived to be a pioneer in lighting, and many of our best products have been developed in collaboration with our partners to meet real-life challenges.