Night-time travel is a necessary part of the busy world in which we live, but due to decreased visibility, traveling in the dark can be dangerous. The British have shed some light on night driving with the invention of the Astucia SolarLite flush road stud. The stud emits LED light, which is powered by small solar panels. The new stud tech is present on 120 British roads, and night-time accidents are down a dramatic 70% since the devices were installed. Amazingly, the SolarLite road stud gives drivers 900 meters of visibility, which increases reaction times to over 30 seconds. Reaction time with standard reflector studs is just 3.2 seconds.

With thousands of Americans dying on night roads every year, any incremental price vs. reflector studs would likely be a drop in the bucket when compared to the incredible savings in insurance claims alone. The government mandates billions of dollars in safety equipment on our cars and trucks, and both the automakers and customers foot the bill in the name of safety. If the SolarLite road stud is nearly as effective as it claims, the governments incorporating them could effectively reduce the likelihood that many automotive safety features would never need to be deployed.

[Source: Astucia]

Gallery: SolarLite road stud

Continue reading Solar-powered LED road markers could light future roadways

Solar-powered LED road markers could light future roadways originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 21 Nov 2007 08:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.