Lack of lighting on urban highways

[golden eagle]

I was driving on US 80 through Pearl tonight and it amazes me just how there's hardly any lighting on the highway. It's even more of a problem when it rains and the stripes in the road can barely be seen. You'd think with it being one of the main thoroughfares through the city (and a major highway at that), officials there would put more street lights there.

[InterstateNG]

Move out of the sticks.

[golden eagle]

I live in Jackson; we don't have that problem here (or least as bad as Pearl).

[myosh_tino]

This is somewhat of a problem on California's urban freeways.  Normally, street lights on freeways are turned off to save electricity however a more recent problem has been copper thieves stealing the wiring to sell for scrap.  Besides streetlights, these thieves also target the wiring for metering lights (ramp meters) knocking them out of commission until the wiring can be replaced (which takes weeks).

[Brandon]

Around here, off-freeway/tollway, it varies by municipality.Some, like Plainfield and Naperville, don't seem to put much lighting up along roads like IL-59.  Others, such as Joliet, installed lighting shortly after the road (IL-59) was widened.

As for the controlled access roads, ISTHA seems to install lighting along most sections of six-lane-plus tollway, but not all sections.  All interchanges and toll plazas get lighting.  IDOT has not been installing lighting along sections of six-lane freeway built after 2000 or so (thus, I-80's and I-55's extended six-lane sections lack lighting).  All interchanges get lighting.

[mgk920]

Around here, off-freeway/tollway, it varies by municipality.Some, like Plainfield and Naperville, don't seem to put much lighting up along roads like IL-59.  Others, such as Joliet, installed lighting shortly after the road (IL-59) was widened.

As for the controlled access roads, ISTHA seems to install lighting along most sections of six-lane-plus tollway, but not all sections.  All interchanges and toll plazas get lighting.  IDOT has not been installing lighting along sections of six-lane freeway built after 2000 or so (thus, I-80's and I-55's extended six-lane sections lack lighting).  All interchanges get lighting.

WisDOT does not generally light its freeways unless someone else pays for it.  For example, it is Milwaukee County who pays for the freeway lights there.  Elsewhere, WisDOT will install lights where needed for safety reasons, including on surface roads, but otherwise, surface road lighting is also left to the municipality that the particular stretch of road is in.  Wisconsin townships are notoriously cheap in that regard, too, but established cities and villages are normally much better.

Yes, there are many parts of the freeway network here in the Appleton, Oshkosh and Green Bay areas that would make good use of lighting.

Mike

[Duke87]

Dunno if this is still the case, but I remember oddly noting when driving the Sunshine Skyway in 2000 that while there were lights illuminating the cable stay structure, the roadway itself was not lit.

[blawp]

Cal freeways only have lights at on ramps and off ramps, generally. I like it that way. It minimizes light pollution.

[mukade]

Except for the most minor ones, Indiana has decent lighting at rural and urban interchanges. It is a mix of high mast and traditional lights. In urban areas when they rebuild the highest traffic volume freeways (Indy and NW Indiana, for example), really good continuous lighting is installed. Some key intersections also get good lighting.

[realjd]

Dunno if this is still the case, but I remember oddly noting when driving the Sunshine Skyway in 2000 that while there were lights illuminating the cable stay structure, the roadway itself was not lit.

If it's like most Florida freeways, I'll bet there were plenty of bright reflectors marking the lane lines though, right?

[iwishiwascanadian]

I-695 (Baltimore Beltway) has some lighting issues.  A lot of the Beltway isn't well lit, this is because the lighting is old and inefficient (the old lighting around Loch Raven Blvd in Parkville) or because the bulbs have burned out (Around the interchange between 695 and the Harrisburg Expressway (83 North by Towson/Lutherville).  All of the construction doesn't help either.  Hopefully the SHA will replace or add lighting. 

[Alps]

NJDOT has this problem; the lights are there, but the money to turn them on isn't.

[Takumi]

Sometimes the lights on I-95 in Petersburg are off when I'm leaving work at night.

[BigMattFromTexas]

Welp, living in Texas, every highway is lit with lighting in the median, or beside the highway. And y'all know Texas and our high mast lighting! Plus being full of electricity from wind turbines could help us! 
BigMatt

[SSOWorld]

Chicago certainly doesn't have a problem with lighting - just too many streetlights that cause that light pollution that the Adler Planetarium folks really hate.

[blawp]

Light pollution sucks. California does a good job minimizing it. I hated it when I lived in Houston.

[KEK Inc.]

Washington uses them pretty frequently on city center roads and dense areas.  I-5 is Belgium-llit throughout all of Vancouver, Tumwater/Olympia/Lacey, Fort Lewis/Tacoma/Fife, Tukwilla, Seattle (starting at MLK Blvd).  I-90 is Belgium-lit through Seattle/Mercer Island & much of Spokane. 

Auxiliary freeways don't tend to have too much street lighting.  Exceptions are SR-500, SR-520 and I-705. 

[roadman65]

The FL 528 Beachline in Florida has one interchange in Orlando that has NO LIGHTING whatsoever, while the rest of the interchanges do.  The John Young Parkway interchange (Exit 3) is commonly used, but it has no poles.

It was built with the FL 528 long before JYP was constructed.  The interchange had the overpass with 528 over the ROW of JYP along with ramp grading for its future construction.  Later when FDOT built the section of JYP between Sand Lake Road and the former Bee Line Expressway, it did not include the necessary lighting.  Most likely, they thought the Turnpike Enterprise (who owns this particular section of FL 528 would do it.  Then Orange County built the remaining section of JYP south of 528 in 1989 and of course they did not include it nor did they use overhead signing either like FDOT did for its section built into that.  That is why SB John Young has bgses and NB JYP has only shields at the 528 ramps.  

[kphoger]

Chicago certainly doesn't have a problem with lighting - just too many streetlights that cause that light pollution that the Adler Planetarium folks really hate.

From age eight to age eighteen, I lived in Atwood (current pop. less than 1200) in Rawlins County, Kansas (current pop. less than 3000).  I remember going off to college in Cook County, Illinois (current pop. more than 5 Million).  One of the most striking things to me was that the sky was pink at night instead of black.  Pink!  Ughh, ugly!  Interestingly, some city folk can't take the darkness out in the country.  I took my girlfriend for a drive after dark once back near Atwood, parked the car, and got out; she got scared of the dark and we had to go back.

[roadman65]

I noticed that we cannot see the stars on the east coast as much as you can in parts of Texas, New Mexico (although I never was there at night), and other places out west.  That is interesting that you imediately saw it and your girlfriend did as well. 

Being in the light pollution you never think of it, although in Key West I did see more stars out over the open ocean than I would elsewhere on the eastern seaboard.

I did notice that on I-75 in Georgia near Sparks there is a long rural segment that has street lighting on it.  I thought it was strange as you never usually see this elsewhere in rural areas except at interchanges.  I was there at night and the lights were not on, so I assume that it must be related to the signs that read "Heavy Fog" nearby.  GADOT must turn these on during certain conditions only as this particular interstate is known for its multi car accidents in foggy or smoky conditions over the decades.

[UptownRoadGeek]

This is actually becoming a problem in the New Orleans area where the I-10 and 610 are becoming noticeably dark in sections because LaDOTD does not fund or maintain lighting and the city hasn't been keeping up with the task. Now that the Crescent City Connection may be handed over to the state (if the tolls aren't reinstated) it's at risk of going dark as well.

[kphoger]

I'm not really sure if it's a huge problem, though, really.  It does strike me as odd when the overhead lights are out, but is it really that much of a safety issue?

[bulkyorled]

Cal freeways only have lights at on ramps and off ramps, generally. I like it that way. It minimizes light pollution.

Agreed.
Besides in the more populated areas there's enough cars or city lights anyways you don't need the lights to go on and on forever and ever.

[hm insulators]

Cal freeways only have lights at on ramps and off ramps, generally. I like it that way. It minimizes light pollution.

I agree, especially as an astronomy buff. I drove on California freeways for years and years and never had any issues with the lighting at only the ramps while the rest of the freeways remained dark. Then I moved to Arizona and every little inch of the freeways in Phoenix is lit up like a rock concert stage and Las Vegas casino in one. I've never understood that.

[sr641]

Terre Haute doesn't have any lighting at the SR 63 / US 41 interchange.