Engineers Discuss Road Lighting And Accidents

Press, Volume XCII, Issue 27794, 20 October 1955, Page 7

Engineers Discuss Road Lighting And Accidents

From 1950 to 1954, 37 Deof road accidents in New Zealand occurred during darkness and traffic tallies showed that about oneffifth of all motor vehicle travel occurred during darkness, said Mr B C Campbell, traffic engineer of the Transport Department, whT was one of the contributors to a symposium street lighting the annual conference of tho ■ yefterday UthOrity Engin eers’ Institute Mr Campbell said there was eviraSift' dar a^ eSS th a e ff r e eF d effective street lighting would pro™ ™d™afety a neers s* &“ ng accident or traffic problem ni Bht di^u^ed 1 street* Ifeft* speakers who g^en^as ati “ asistant electrical engineer of* th» Wellington City Council Ad£„S e street lighting protected huAan’hfe he said, and the engineer m „ 111e ’ S 3 service to ms fellow men That aspect should not be hr allowing economic considerations justify poor installations. 5 “ had e en a kill fi ed ZSFWJffi gwsx’sEFs &ar t m7o ld t e hTd e lffi ra of an a inq “ 5t locked a e ?l h r showed 0 ttS £d mSed^hT B ™^ MoVdynv^ -- Sad Safetv cAnern New Zeala nd g U g rin a g vo d ° DI Z outside Sere the Hmt r^=a r^che^J hls figure cTl6%*° ota huhu-a total egateT S r s « y ttS? m^e Ug ♦nSu-tr streets where lighting was totally inadequate or entirely absent.

American Research r s Se *l rch ln America, 49 11 that a survey of Clties disclosed that 5pe ?? 1r «,.l doUar 5° cents a head on street lighting had 130 nicht accidentsfor ever*’ 100 day-time accidona S ; Those spending 1 y d oUar to“ 1 Of s °tn Ce ?m a «, head had a ratl ° ?L,! , to 10 °; .‘hose spending 50 doll ? r had a ratio ot 1 05 12. and f °r those spending to 10(> an °° cents the ratio was 235

, Amer lean rec larch demonstrated . 0.1. re "? s a sreater chance ol nx Sht accident being fatal or serious. There was a probability that au mjureo person who had been travelling alone might snend a long time before being discovered and there were difficulties in getting medicai

It had been shown in America that mim r sh We^e M ndal greater strain at night than in t e day time, Mr Camobcll continued To check that, drivers blood pressure had been measured, tneir oulses taken and their pressure taken 0 wheel cnd the back of the sea;

Even a drunken drivel was a bettei driver if he could ee where he was going. Mr .Campbell said. Another pv.nt of mportanue on visibility was that during the last five ‘’ears in Nev Zealand 409 pedestrians had been - down on pedestrian cross'ngr and 206 of those cases had occurred a'

Mr Campbell con idered tnat floo lighting of pedestrian crossings was ■ good thing, but d d not 'avotir flastvnlights at cressings, stich as have beeinstalled in some rlace because the-

drivers. They attenti °n of was a PedStrtan le™n?w 1 e™ n?w that there flashing light woniH C « os . 51 i? B i but the see a pedlstrian d not heip them to roained , angin eer’s work reand an inadeoSt/ e? ’ Mr E!lis said, tinually discre3hS.t? installation conProfession and did* thj e en S lna ?ring disservice. Good commun ity a stalled to annm„J" t , s ., c ° rrtt ‘ly inbe regarded as a citv S^l dards sh °uld and one with town amenity Should be BroSd the - engineer Mr G"V a ssociate<f New Plymoutl? manager of the tricity denartmon? lty .p°jmcils eleccent lightinc a ai A that fluorese’!cellef 1 t visib l i tv e in hC = n o£ looked well rennSla > U , we ather, used less wS°reaub7d e t Ch S ical a J d cultural—inc a ? d to be combined in lighta street, said Mr L. B. Hutton .rsuffi-s carry it through In thp thou 8 h both understanding harsh »n 7 , are ava il ab le. the result i! tier unacceptable. A combina- ~ technique, artistic appreciation suggSt n t^,t Vlll S e ,. rare - Is ‘t safe to rarStVSl? th^ Pr en C g?ne O e n rii/ E S Profession in general, and our branch i? particular, claim to have develoned faculties to the s!me 'deft matter? technical Acuities, and does

nH,S. matters very much, if for no nHitii reason ba , n toat we are robbing which is foolish; and we ge?oLs bb w g th x nublic, which is danfactinn ob ourselves of the satisfaction of haying done a perfect job, tton rob - the pu J” ic 01 the satisfaction of seeing and enjoying it. We ?a a n V te.^ e m», meraly the hangers-up of in thl v„iH ?ere no no aesthetics, in the lighting of our streets.”