This is genius
http://www.extremetech.com/extreme/...eetlights-in-netherlands-to-save-money-energy
http://www.extremetech.com/extreme/...eetlights-in-netherlands-to-save-money-energy
In an effort to save the massive amount of energy standard streetlights consume, and to present drivers with more information on the road, a Dutch company has transformed a highway in the Netherlands into an eerie glow-in-the-dark smart highway.
A couple of years ago, Dan Roosegaarde said he was sitting in his car in the Netherlands and realized that millions are spent on roads, but no one seems to care how they look or act. Then, while speaking to the BBC last year, Roosegaarde noted that the government is shutting down streetlights late at night in order to conserve energy and save money. Roosegaarde felt it was strange than we spend billions of dollars on designing and developing cars, but the things on which they’re used aren’t involved in that budget or process. So, his company — Studio Roosegaarde — teamed up with Heijmans, a Dutch civil engineering firm, to create a paint that can glow brightly enough in the dark — and under outdoor conditions — in order to light the way for drivers.
Een laatste blik op een pracht innovatie pic.twitter.com/DQTsFQZxR8
— Maxime Verhagen (@MaximeVerhagen) April 10, 2014
The team developed a photo-luminescent powder that, when mixed with road paint, can glow in the dark for up to 10 hours after charging up from the daytime sunlight. The paint was placed on a 0.3-mile stretch of highway N329, about 62 miles southeast of Amsterdam in the city of Oss. Studio Roosegaarde also aimed to add glowing weather symbols that would activate when the symbol’s corresponding weather conditions took place; for example, snowflake glyphs would appear on the road to indicate that the road is slippery and caution is advised. However, for now, only the glowing street lines have been implemented.