The New South Wales government has revealed it will be trialling glow-in-the-dark line markings on a notorious road south of Sydney to try and encourage truck driver safety in the area.
The photoluminescent painted markings will absorb and store sunlight during the day before glowing at night along Bulli Pass, south of Sydney, to help drivers better see line markings and the shape of the road ahead.
The technology, known as ‘glow roads’, are designed to improve night-time visibility and in adverse weather, providing a safe alternative at sites where street lighting isn’t practical.
The technology will be trialled over six months, with Transport for NSW (TfNSW) then assessing if it should be rolled out wider across NSW.
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TfNSW told OwnerDriver the line markings are being installed today and tomorrow during a planned maintenance closure of Bulli Pass, with the trial set to begin on Thursday.
The trial follows testing conducted at TfNSW’s Future Mobility Testing and Research Centre in Cudal, with the hairpin turn on Bulli Pass set to be the first place in the state to get the technology.
The location was chosen after a spike in near-miss incidents between 9pm and 4am, with 125 near-misses recorded in the year to June 30.
Bulli Pass is heavily used by large trucks and motorcycles and the new line markings will be installed part way down the steep descent to increase awareness of the sharp bend. A glow sign will also be installed.
“Line markings might not be the first thing we think about in terms of innovation, but this is a bright idea and we are excited to trial its benefits,” NSW roads minister John Graham says.
“Being able to see the shape of the road ahead is critical to safe driving and that’s what Glow Roads do.
“Data shows around a third of fatal crashes in NSW happen at night. If this trial is deemed a success, we will look at its application on other locations with a history of crashes or near-misses where better visibility is needed.
“Bulli Pass has had a rising number of near-misses – particularly at night – so using Glow Roads to improve driving conditions will help the thousands of motorists who rely on this busy route.”
The trial comes just a day after a truck driver sadly lost their life after losing control on a steep part of Bulli Pass.
“The Glow Roads is the brainchild of one of our transformation teams here at Transport who – trying to find a solution to boost safety at remote or isolated sites – pitched the idea at an in-house innovation challenge,” TfNSW secretary Josh Murray says.
“Improving road safety is a massive priority for everyone across at Transport, so we jumped on the opportunity to put this ‘bright idea’ to the test.
“Before rolling ‘Glow Roads’ out on public roads, we tested the new line markings and glow paint under a range of conditions at our Future Mobility testing site to make sure it was ready for the next phase of the trial.”
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