LIGHTING POLES - PASSIVE SAFETY

In the past, the need to examine roadside obstacles and the safety of road users was not as urgent as it is now. There was much less traffic on the roads, so positioning a lighting column along a motorway without considering it as an obstacle was the order of the day. 

The development of passively safe lighting columns has been ongoing for more than 40 years, which is hardly surprising given that the amount of traffic on the roads is increasing all the time.

The poles for public lighting, the supports that hold up signs and street lighting are traditionally very strong and heavy. Paradoxically, strong and heavy poles and support represent a great danger in the event of impact due to a spill of a vehicle from the roadway.

The EU has taken full awareness of the danger represented by fixed obstacles at the roadside and addressed the problem by introducing, in 2000, a norm aimed at determining the passive safety of the support structures.

In EU, the poles for lighting must conform to EN 40. For passive safety, it is also necessary to perform a test in accordance with EN 12767. The standard specifies the performance requirements and defines the levels in terms of passive safety designed to reduce injury to the occupants of vehicles in the event of impact of permanent supporting structures along roadsides.

The support structures without passive safety requirements belong to class 0.

Fortunately, alternatives to the heavy posts without passive safety are available in the market such as the use of FIBROPAL fiberglass support, produced by FIBROVER (www.fibrover.it) with high passive safety, while also ensuring a long life more than 25 years without maintenance.