Light & Engineering 33 (4) 2025

Volume 33
Date of publication 08/15/2025
Pages 4–14

Assessing Lighting Preferences in Nocturnal Urban Environments: A Photo Stimuli Survey on Safety Perception and Visual Comfort L&E, Vol.33, No.4, 2025

Articles authors:

Lanlan Wei, Grega Bizjak, Matija Svetina, Matej Bernard Kobav

Lanlan Wei, M. Arch. She is a Ph. D. Candidate at the University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Electrical Engineering. She has over 15 years of experience in lighting design, application, and urban planning. She worked with Signify China for more than a decade. Currently, she is an optical engineer and researcher specializing in road lighting applications in EU

Grega Bizjak, Ph. D. He is a Full Professor and Head of Laboratory of Lighting and Photometry at Faculty of Electrical Engineering, University of Ljubljana. He is active in the field of lighting and photometry as well as in the field of electrical power engineering. His main research interests in lighting are photometry, energy efficient indoor and outdoor lighting, use of daylight and use of LEDs in lighting applications. Prof. Bizjak is President of Slovenian National Committee of CIE and representative of Slovenia in CIE Division 2

Matija Svetina, Ph. D., Professor of Developmental Psychology at the University of Ljubljana, Department of Psychology. He is currently involved in several projects related to experimental, environmental, and urban psychology, including the assessment of cognitive and emotional load during environmental information processing, place attachment in the context of cultural heritage, and the assessment of psychological comfort in urban environments. He has been a research fellow and visiting professor at several academic institutions in Europe and North America

Matej Bernard Kobav, Ph. D., Assistant Professor at the Laboratory of Lighting and Photometry at Faculty of Electrical Engineering, University of Ljubljana. The main part of his research field is in the field of lighting. He is mainly engaged in measurements, lighting simulations and exploitation of daylight in the indoor premises. He is also the general secretary of Lighting Engineering Society of Slovenia and Slovenian representative in CIE Division 3

Abstract:

Outdoor public lighting is essential for shaping nocturnal urban environments, as it significantly enhances visibility and fosters a sense of safety perception and visual comfort in public spaces, thus, influencing their usage. While extensive research has been conducted on lighting parameters such as luminance, illuminance, uniformity, and glare, there remains a lack of focus on user preferences for actual outdoor lighting settings. This study aims to address this gap by investigating photo stimuli based on public lighting preferences in a real outdoor environment in Ljubljana, Slovenia. In this research, 116 participants evaluated their levels of comfort, confidence, and spatial awareness based on nine virtual images from two distinct locations featuring various lighting settings, these included continuous and less-continuous lighting environments, low-mounted (4.5 m) lighting poles vs. high-mounted (12 m) lighting poles, three distinct CCTs, and both overhead and peripheral lighting environments. Participants rated each lighting scene on a 5‑point scale, facilitating an assessment of their preferences. The analysis revealed a significant preference for continuous, high-mounted (12 m) lighting poles with a natural white CCT in the square area, and for overhead lighting in the road area. The most substantial difference in user experience was observed between continuous and less-continuous lighting environment, while variations in pole height, CCT, and lighting position demonstrated comparatively minor impacts. Notably, the influence of CCT on participants’ perceptions of safety, comfort, and spatial awareness was the least significant among the factors examined.
These findings provide valuable insights into the design of urban lighting aimed at enhancing safety and comfort, thereby informing future urban planning and lighting design practices.

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Keywords

DOI: https://doi.org/10.33383/2025-019

Article in RUS:
Svetotekhnika # 3, 2025, pp. 4–10