Roadway light in Bulacan, Pampanga portions to be upgraded—NLEX

More than 1,300 roadway lights from Bulacan to Pampanga are expected to be upgraded along the stretch of the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX).

The upgrading of the roadway lights—to cover a stretch of 33 kilometers from Balagtas, Bulacan to San Fernando City, Pampanga—are part of NLEX Corporation’s program to improve motorist safety and enhance customer experience.

The project, to start in February—will replace existing LED lights to increase brightness level to 20 lux from the 16 lux, giving a better illumination of the road during nighttime and increase the road users’ awareness while traversing the said stretch.

In a statement, the NLEX Corporation noted that the new LED lights are more energy efficient, reliable, and durable since they can last an average of 70,000 operating hours compared to the conventional type of roadway lighting.

“They are compact and work well in a wide range of temperatures and weather conditions including typhoons. In addition, LEDs have good color rendering index or the ability to reveal the actual color of the object, which is very beneficial for night driving,” they claimed.  

The latest roadway lighting, the tollway operator claimed, will give better vision range, making it easier to read road and warning signs in advance while decreasing glare from vehicle headlights. The lights exceed the 12 lux standard of the Philippine Department of Energy and emit less heat and therefore minimize greenhouse gas emissions.

NLEX Corporation President and General Manager J. Luigi Bautista said that they are targeting to install all the covered roadway lights by March.

“This move aims to standardize our lighting and provide uniform luminosity of roadway lights for the entire NLEX system—from Balintawak all the way to areas in the north. At NLEX, we go beyond what is required by providing our motorists with adequate lighting for safer travel, as well as helping the environment by lessening our carbon footprint,” he said.

To add to that, NLEX Corporation stated that apart from their routine maintenance activities (roadway sweeping, grass cutting, tree pruning, and drainage cleaning), the they are also conducting regular pavement repairs and lighting replacement.

Last year, they have replaced 1,078 interchange and median LED lighting from NLEX Balintawak to Tabang, increasing the illumination from 12 lux to 20 lux.

Back in 2017, NLEX Corporation extended the lighted portion of the expressway alongside the construction of new expressway lanes in the said segment.

Photos from NLEX Corporation

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