Anyone who’s driven on I-70 East through Colorado in the black of night knows that traditional reflector strips aren’t always enough to guide you safely along a dangerous road. Well, the good people of the Netherlands may have found a solution with snazzy new glow-in-the-dark roads.
Originally proposed in 2012 by Studio Roosegaarde, the project finally came to fruition on a 500-meter stretch of the N329 highway in Oss. , studio founder Daan Roosegaarde described his vision for the project: “One day I was sitting in my car in the Netherlands, and I was amazed by these roads we spend millions on but no one seems to care what they look like and how they behave. I started imagining this Route 66 of the future where technology jumps out of the computer screen and becomes part of us.”
The effect is achieved using a photoluminescent powder mixed in with the paint. “It looks like you are driving through a fairy tale,” said . Although the road currently features just the side and center lines, future plans include room for snowflake designs that become visible when temperatures drop below a certain threshold, signaling icy conditions.
Although Roosegarde and his partner in the project, Dutch construction company Heijmans, would like to expand the glowing-road project, there are no current plans for future contracts. Maybe their talents would be put to better use making glow-in-the-dark bike lanes here in the United States.