ENERGY SAVING AND ENVIRONMENTAL COMPATIBILITY IN ROAD LIGHTING

The paper analyses the conditions for assuring the compatibility of external lighting with the environment and particularly with the consumption of energy on one side and the astronomical observations on the other. The effects of different types of luminaires are described in connection with road illuminated according to illuminance and luminance criteria. The paper demonstrates that the illuminated towns seen from far distances, i.e. the main source of disturbance for the astronomic observations, behave like single diffusing sources since the luminaires are hidden the urban cavities bordered by the buildings. A model is presented for the analysis of the territory around a site, aimed at verifying the possibilities to improve the environmental compatibility of the outdoor lighting installations and the possibility of local modification for improving the situation.