Nighttime Construction: Evaluation of Lighting Glare for Highway Construction in Illinois

11040562008PDFTech ReportFHWA-ICT-08-014ICT Project R27-2Work zone safetyGlareConstructionNighttime ConstructionLighting, GlareHighway ConstructionWork ZonesUnited StatesIllinois. Dept. of Transportation. Bureau of Materials and Physical ResearchEl-Rayes, KhaledLiu, Liang Y.Pena-Mora, FenioskyBoukamp, FrankOdeh, IbrahimElseifi, MostafaHassan, Marwa M.Illinois Center for TransportationIllinois. Dept. of Transportation. Bureau of Materials and Physical ResearchUS Transportation CollectionThis report presents the findings of a research project that studied the veiling luminance ratio (glare) experienced by drive by motorists in lanes adjacent to nighttime work zones. The objectives of the project are to (1) provide an in-depth comprehensive review of the latest literature on the causes of glare and the existing practices that can be used to quantify and control glare during nighttime highway construction; (2) identify practical factors that affect the measurement of veiling luminance ratio (glare) in and around nighttime work zones; (3) analyze and compare the levels of glare and lighting performance generated by typical lighting arrangements in nighttime highway construction; (4) evaluate the impact of lighting parameters on glare and provide practical recommendations to reduce and control lighting glare in and around nighttime work zones; (5) develop a practical model to measure and quantify levels of glare experienced by drive-by motorists; and (6) investigate and analyze existing studies and recommendations on the maximum allowable levels of veiling luminance ratio (glare) that can be tolerated by nighttime drivers. The research work was performed in four main tasks: literature review, site visits, field studies, and model development. In the first task, a comprehensive literature review was conducted to study the latest research on quantifying and controlling lighting glare. In the second task, several nighttime highway construction sites were visited to identify practical factors that affect the measurement of glare. In the third task, field experiments were conducted to measure the levels of glare generated by commonly used construction lighting equipment and to evaluate the impact of lighting parameters on glare levels. In the fourth task, practical models were developed to enable resident engineers and contractors to measure and control the levels of glare experienced by drive-by motorists in lanes adjacent to nighttime work zones.77