Road Markings!

Road markings have guided drivers since the early days of modern highway infrastructure and the technology has changed remarkably little in the century since the 1st painted lines appeared on public roads. Reflective paint improved visibility when headlights hit it directly. Active lighting improved visibility further but required grid power, maintenance schedules, and infrastructure costs that rural and remote roads have rarely justified economically. Australia just installed road markings that glow in the dark using photoluminescent material that absorbs sunlight during daylight hours and emits that stored energy as visible light through the night without any electrical connection, any maintenance requirement beyond what painted road markings already need, and any ongoing cost beyond the initial installation. The safety case for glow in the dark road markings is most significant on the roads where conventional lighting is least present: rural highways, remote stretches, and regional routes where the distance between street lights is measured in kilometers and where the darkness between them creates the visibility conditions responsible for a disproportionate share of serious road accidents. Australia has some of the longest stretches of unlit highway of any developed nation and the photoluminescent marking technology it is deploying addresses the visibility gap on precisely those roads without the infrastructure investment that conventional lighting would require to serve them. The sun charges the road during the day. The road lights itself at night. No grid required and no driver left navigating in complete darkness on a road that absorbed enough sunlight to show them the way.