Linking nighttime outdoor lighting attributes to pedestrians' feeling of safety: An interactive survey approach

Portnov, Boris A.; Saad, Rami; Trop, Tamar; Kliger, Doron; Svechkina, Alina

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0242172

Cited by 28 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 34 publications

(45 reference statements)

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“…Light can affect human health [ 5 ], which can be both positive and negative [ 6 ]. Inappropriate ALAN can affect human emotions [ 7 , 8 ], perception, evaluation, behavior [ 9 , 10 ], and feeling of safety [ 11 ] and can even have a significant impact on physical health [ 5 , 6 , 12 – 14 ]. If humans are exposed to an uncomfortable light environment for a long time, such as insufficient brightness, uneven lighting, uncomfortable glare, and intense strobe light, it will not only cause serious harm to their physical health but also affect their psychological health [ 12 , 15 , 16 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Research on Night Light Comfort of Pedestrian Space in Urban Park

Zhang

Dai

2021

Computational and Mathematical Methods in Medicine

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The outdoor light environment significantly affects aspects of public psychological and physiological health. This study conducted experiments to quantify the effects of the light environment on visitor light comfort in urban park pedestrian space. Nine sets of lighting conditions with different average horizontal illuminance (2 lx, 6 lx, 10 lx) and colour temperatures (5600 K, 4300 K, 3000 K) were established virtual reality scenarios. Subjective light comfort was evaluated, and electroencephalogram (EEG) was measured on 18 subjects to comprehensively study the effects of different light environments on human light comfort. The results of the comprehensive evaluation showed that colour temperature had a very significant impact on subjective light comfort, with warm light being generally more favourable than cool light in enhancing human subjective light comfort. The results of the EEG analysis show that the average horizontal illuminance is an important factor in the level of physiological fatigue, and that physiological fatigue can be maintained in a superior state at an appropriate level of illuminance. Based on the results of both subjective and objective factors, a comprehensive analysis was carried out to propose a range of average horizontal illuminance (4.08 lx, 6.99 lx) and a range of colour temperature (3126 K, 4498 K) for the comprehensive light comfort zone in urban park pedestrian space.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Research on Night Light Comfort of Pedestrian Space in Urban Park

Zhang

Dai

2021

Computational and Mathematical Methods in Medicine

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“…The factors influencing FoS after dark include not only illuminance, but also other lighting attributes, such as uniformity, light color rendering, and light color temperature [10]. Studies by Portnov et al [11], Saad et al [12], and Svechkina el al. [13] were based on a modern mobile phone survey technology for data collection, and indicated that illumination levels, either perceived or instrumentally measured, can affect the feeling of safety (FoS) of pedestrians after dark.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In particular, Svechkina et al [13] established an evaluation model between road lighting attributes and the feeling of safety (FoS), and found that lighting has a certain positive impact on FoS. In addition, Portnov et al [11] established a model linking different PSL attributes with FoS. The research shows that higher illumination level and uniformity have a positive impact on FoS, and rich blue light has a negative impact on FoS This conclusion is supported by another recent study by Saad et al [12], who found that using warmer lights and increasing light uniformity can help to save energy while maintaining a reasonable FoS level.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evaluating Street Lighting Quality in Residential Areas by Combining Remote Sensing Tools and a Survey on Pedestrians’ Perceptions of Safety and Visual Comfort

et al. 2022

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The perceived quality of street lighting influences pedestrians’ perceptions of safety and visual comfort, as well as outdoors activities at night. This study explores the association between street lighting attributes, such as illuminance and wavelength, and pedestrians’ feeling of safety (FoS) and perceived lighting quality (PLQ) in eight residential districts in Dalian, China. To achieve this goal, we combine remote sensing technology with ground investigation. The ground research includes physical measurements of lighting attributes, such as intensity, color temperature, and glare, as well as survey evaluations of pedestrians’ perceptions of safety and visual comfort. We also analyze the influence of several environmental factors, such as traffic volumes and vegetation, while accounting for personal characteristics of the observers, such as gender and age. Findings from the remote sensing reveal that Dalian’s residential districts differ substantially by their nighttime light emissions, with high concentration of strong red band (i.e., long wavelength) emissions occurring in Zhongshan and Jinzhou, and strong blue band (i.e., short wavelength) emissions found in central Zhongshan. Results from the ground surveys further indicate that a satisfactory level of FoS reaches at the illumination levels of 5–17 lx, and that people feel safer if nighttime light is warm and uniform. From a multiple regression analysis, it is also found that illuminance and uniformity are the main factors affecting PLQ under conditions of low or high illuminance, while glare and color temperature play a more significant role under high illuminance. In addition, a satisfactory level of PLQ is found at illuminance levels of 25–35 lx and light color temperature of 4000 K–5500 K.

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“…In fact, on the one hand, taking advantages of the high sense of presence experienced in immersive virtual reality environments means that Virtual Reality will increasingly become the tool that designers and administrators will use to select alternatives, not exclusively based on the target values of the lighting metrics indicated in international standards, but by a human-centric and participative approach, as well as on expectations, preferences, satisfaction and feeling of citizens. This will help them consider peculiarities and sensibilities of local communities toward several lighting related aspects having direct or indirect consequences on citizens' behavior (accessibility, safety) [31,52,53] and health (biological functions and rhythms) [9,54], tourists (landmarks, lighting gates) [55,56], animals and vegetation (attraction, reproduction) [6,8,9], as well as light pollution [57,58].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Strong evidence links circadian disruption to major depression and other mood disorders [30]. Regarding the sense of safety, lighting is one of the most important aspects affecting public spaces' perceived quality and attractiveness [31,32]. The sense of security in urban parks is mainly related to visibility [33].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

An Investigation of the Influence of the Night Lighting in a Urban Park on Individuals’ Emotions

Masullo

Cioffi

et al. 2022

Sustainability

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Outdoor urban lighting design is a complex issue. It involves multiple aspects (energy consumption, lighting pollution, aesthetics, and safety) that must be balanced to make sustainable decisions. Although the energy and environmental issues assumed a driving role in the optimization of the urban lighting design, its impact on the psychophysical well-being of individuals has received less attention. Artificial lighting has been shown to add several meanings to an individual’s experience of space: affective (affect, emotion, mood), cognitive (attention, imagination, perception), associative (memory, judgment), and motivational (closeness, openness, communication). Traditionally, studies on the effects of lighting on individuals’ emotions have mainly focused on indoor spaces, while the present study aims to investigate the influence of lighting on individuals’ emotions in an outdoor environment. Participants experienced a simulated urban park through virtual reality. Specifically, the urban park was shown with different combinations of overall illuminance (high vs medium vs low) and correlated colour temperature (CCT) (warm vs intermediate vs cool). For each combination, participants were asked to judge how they felt. In general, results showed that high-intensity cool light made participants more nervous, while warm light made individuals feel more tired and less motivated to explore the park. In contrast, an intermediate CCT at low or medium illuminance impacted individuals positively. Finally, it was found that participants’ mood predicted the impact that park lighting would have on them. These results suggest that assessing the influence of lighting on individuals’ emotions allows the decision-makers to implement the type of artificial lighting that will simultaneously safeguard both the well-being of individuals and the environment.

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Linking nighttime outdoor lighting attributes to pedestrians' feeling of safety: An interactive survey approach

Cited by 28 publications

References 34 publications

Research on Night Light Comfort of Pedestrian Space in Urban Park

Research on Night Light Comfort of Pedestrian Space in Urban Park

Evaluating Street Lighting Quality in Residential Areas by Combining Remote Sensing Tools and a Survey on Pedestrians’ Perceptions of Safety and Visual Comfort

An Investigation of the Influence of the Night Lighting in a Urban Park on Individuals’ Emotions

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