FYI.

This story is over 5 years old.

Design

Roads Of The Future Are Here... And They Glow In The Dark

Studio Roosegaarde's 'N329- Road of the Future' now illuminates a section of Dutch highway, replacing energy-consuming streetlamps with high-quality glow-in-the-dark paint.

Images via

Dutch design firm Studio Roosegaarde's first foray into transit design came to light back in April with N329- Road of the Future, __a smart highway that replaces energy-wasting streetlamps with specially designed "Glowing Lines." Today the firm announced the completion of the smart highway's pilot program, a significant milestone in a project that has been in the works since studio founder Daan Roosegaarde first announced the project back in 2012.

Advertisement

These so-called Glowing Lines, which Roosegaarde created in tandem with industrial development company Heijmans, now span all of the N329 highway in Oss, the Netherlands. Studio Roosegaarde's press release describes this iteration of the project as a "matured design," and likens the user experience to "going through a fairy tale." We don't know how many fairy tales feature "foto-luminizing" powder, combined with glow-in-the-dark paint, but in this case, the result looks pretty magical.

Studio Roosegaarde plans on spreading that magic first across the Netherlands, and then across the world. "New projects will be launched internationally," reads their press release, followed by an announcement that the Dutch Minister of Infrastructure wants Roosegaarde's Glowing Lines installed on the 32km dike, Afsluitdijk. Now that he's proven the feasibility of N329- Road of the Future, perhaps Roosegaarde can begin designing a plan for the dynamic paint, electricity-generating windmills, and motion-sensing lights he postulated in the smart highway's original concepts.

Travel the glowing Road of the Future yourself in the images below:

Visit Studio Roosegaarde's website to peruse their other beautiful design solutions to global crises.

Related:

Glow In The Dark Roads Bring Radioactive Beauty To Night Drives

New Project Cleans The Smog Out Of China And Turns It Into Jewelry

Korean Artist Koo Jeong-A Creates Glow-In-The Dark Skate Park In France

Watch A Choreographed Drone Create Floating Trails Of Light