SURFACE-MOUNTED LIGHTS ON ROADWAYS FOR GUIDANCE

DEVELOPMENTS IN LIGHTING FOR AIRPORTS ARE DISCUSSED. THE PRINCIPLE OF CONTOUR PERCEPTION APPLIED TO THE RUNWAY OF AN AIRPORT IS SHOWN BY FIGURES. THE TURNOFF FOR AN EXIT TAXIWAY IS SHOWN FROM A LONG DISTANCE AWAY AS WELL AS FROM A CLOSER POSITION. DIRECT LIGHT UNITS WERE DEVELOPED TO HAVE A HIGH CONTRAST WITH BACKGROUND. THE LIGHTING UNIT DEVELOPED IS A SMALL FLAT CIRCULAR DISK-SHAPED FIXTURE THAT USES EITHER A THREE-, FOUR- OR FIFTEEN-WATT TWELVE-VOLT AUTOMOTIVE TYPE LIGHTBULB. LOW OPERATING VOLTAGE WAS SELECTED BECAUSE OF THE AVAILABILITY OF THE LOW WATTAGE BULB IN A TUBULAR SHAPE. THE BEST CONDITIONS FOR NIGHT DRIVING WERE OBTAINED BY DRAWING FULL LINES OF HIGH CONTRAST ALONG THE EDGES AND ALONG THE CENTER LINE OF THE AIRPORT RUNWAY AND MARKING THE TURNOFF POINT FOR EXIT TAXIWAYS WITH A CENTERLINE IN THE TAXIWAY WHICH DEPARTS FROM THE RUNWAY CENTERLINE AT THE POINT-OF- TURN AND PROCEEDS THROUGH DEFINITE BREAK IN THE EDGE LIGHTING AT THE ENTRANCE TO THE TURNOFF. LIGHT SPACINGS WERE EXPERIMENTED WITH TO OBTAIN THE MOST SATISFACTORY. CONCLUSIONS DEVELOPED FOR THE AIRPORT PROBLEM COULD BE APPLIED WITH LITTLE MODIFICATION TO MODERN HIGHWAYS.

• Record URL:
  http://onlinepubs.trb.org/Onlinepubs/hrbbulletin/226/226-004.pdf
• Supplemental Notes:
  • No 226, pp 16 - 26, 9 FIG, 1 REF Distribution, posting, or copying of this PDF is strictly prohibited without written permission of the Transportation Research Board of the National Academy of Sciences. Unless otherwise indicated, all materials in this PDF are copyrighted by the National Academy of Sciences. Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
• Authors:
  • FINCH, D M
• Publication Date: 1959

Media Info

• Media Type: Digital/other
• Pagination: 11p
• Monograph Title: Night visibility 1959
• Serial:
  • Highway Research Board Bulletin
  • Issue Number: 226
  • Publisher: Highway Research Board

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Airport runways; Center lines; Contours; Direction signs; Electric potential; Highways; Lighting equipment; Spacing; Street lighting; Taxiways
• Uncontrolled Terms: Edges
• Old TRIS Terms: Directional sign
• Subject Areas: Highways; Pavements; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00220289
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS, TRB
• Created Date: Sep 16 1994 12:00AM