Motion-sensitive platform lighting

[Western Sunset]

Do many stations have this? I was at Westbury last evening and as I wandered down the platform, the lighting came on as I passed along it.

 

[172007]

Quite a few in the West Midlands and down to Euston on the WCML.

 

[Spaceship323]

Crediton Station has these, quite funny seeing the lights come on at 11pm and seeing a cat walking along the platform

 

[Peter Mugridge]

Ashtead in Surrey has had this for a few years now.

Not sure if Epsom has - it's difficult to get a long enough time for it to cut in without someone wandering down the platform keeping it bright.

 

[Starmill]

Yes. It helps to save energy by having the lights go into "low power mode", but when a train arrives all of the lights go back up to the specified brightness. A very large number of Southern stations have them.

 

[jon0844]

Do many stations have this? I was at Westbury last evening and as I wandered down the platform, the lighting came on as I passed along it.

Do you mean from off to on, or brighter? I've seen the latter at many stations, but never lights going off entirely.

 

[fairysdad]

Ashtead in Surrey has had this for a few years now.

Not sure if Epsom has - it's difficult to get a long enough time for it to cut in without someone wandering down the platform keeping it bright.

Ewell West and Stoneleigh both have.

 

[D6975]

Smart escalators are becoming more common too.

 

[alxndr]

Kemble and Swindon also. I suspect it will be a very long list!

 

[pdeaves]

Smart escalators are becoming more common too.

e.g. Reading. It's most disconcerting when the escalator suddenly speeds up just as you step on it. I very nearly became an incident statistic once.

Variable lighting as per this thread seems like a sensible idea; I hope the control system uses less energy than leaving the lights on full!

 

[DarloRich]

loads of stations, especially small rural ones, have this kind of technology. My local station does.

 

[thenorthern]

Couple of stations in the East Midlands have motion sensor lighting at least for some lights at the station. Also in parts of the East Midlands I know when the line is closed overnight the lights at some stations are switched off immediately.

 

[Sm5]

Banstead does…
I went there 130am, in the extreme wilds in the dark, creepy remote location..waiting for the NRTT 37.
on seeing it was heading out from the downs, I walked the platform in the rain to bring the lights on…
which promptly dimmed seconds before the 37 came.
I must be mad.

 

[satisnek]

Yes, I've been on a couple of stations where the platform lights 'bright up' as you approach them. Considering that they're LED lights where the difference in the already low current consumption must be negligible, are they worth it?

 

[jon0844]

Yes, I've been on a couple of stations where the platform lights 'bright up' as you approach them. Considering that they're LED lights where the difference in the already low current consumption must be negligible, are they worth it?

Given the number of LEDs and the increased light output, I'm sure it is very much a case of 'every little helps'.

 

[83G/84D]

Some station platform lights in Cornwall used to be on a timer and went off completely about an hour after the last train of the night was due then came on again before the first one next morning.

 

[Class172]

Exeter St Davids and Taunton also have these systems. As others have said I suspect the list might be quite long.

 

[pdeaves]

Considering that they're LED lights where the difference in the already low current consumption must be negligible, are they worth it?

In some places it's to keep the neighbours happy.

 

[YorksLad12]

Smart escalators are becoming more common too.

Ah yes. Smart escalators. Great if you know how they work... which I didn't when I stayed near the Berlaymont in Brussels one time, hoiking my bag up the steps... to passed by one of the locals as he glided past me

In some places it's to keep the neighbours happy.

I'd imagine the neighbours would be bit annoyed by the light coming on, going off, coming on... It's noticeable how much light there is at a major station such as Leeds overnight, even during the Christmas shutdown. I've often wondered who the lights are for when there is literally no-one around, not even station workers. The Southern Entrance closes at 10pm but remains lit when it could at least be partly darkened or given motion-sensitive lighting.

 

[Class172]

Ah yes. Smart escalators. Great if you know how they work... which I didn't when I stayed near the Berlaymont in Brussels one time, hoiking my bag up the steps... to passed by one of the locals as he glided past me

Brussels is also where I came across smart escalators; they appeared to be very common across the metro/tram network. It seems an eminently sensible idea to me as an energy saving measure where escalator use is infrequent.

 

[Ianno87]

Cambridge has some motion-activated lighting on Platform 1 and Platform 4.

 

[satisnek]

In some places it's to keep the neighbours happy.

I'd imagine the neighbours would be bit annoyed by the light coming on, going off, coming on... It's noticeable how much light there is at a major station such as Leeds overnight, even during the Christmas shutdown. I've often wondered who the lights are for when there is literally no-one around, not even station workers. The Southern Entrance closes at 10pm but remains lit when it could at least be partly darkened or given motion-sensitive lighting.

The lights I'm talking about are those which are permanently on at a slightly reduced level and ramp up to full brightness when you approach them. But yes, I never thought about neighbours

 

[SCDR_WMR]

And in rural settings, they are good for local wildlife.
My only gripe is when they aren't working properly (kidsgrove!) - as a conductor it adds huge risk in low light mode to visibility during late night or in fog.

 

[jon0844]

The lights I'm talking about are those which are permanently on at a slightly reduced level and ramp up to full brightness when you approach them. But yes, I never thought about neighbours

LED lights are already pretty directional, so it's more likely reflections from other surfaces causing issues for neighbours - but I'm sure any light can have filters put in if there's any unwanted glare.

I suppose lights that get brighter and then dim later might be more noticeable (given the change in brightness) but I am sure they could be set to fade more gently if there was a demand to do so.

 

[Baxenden Bank]

A problem with this type of light is if you happen to be sat still for a while. Suddenly the lights go off and you end up sat in the dark waving your arms about to get them back on again. You might be sat reading a book waiting for the train, or as I really have encountered on more than one occasion, sat on the loo!

 

[Class360/1]

Colchester north station has motion sensitive lighting- brightens when you walk past the sensor

 

[Ediswan]

A problem with this type of light is if you happen to be sat still for a while. Suddenly the lights go off and you end up sat in the dark waving your arms about to get them back on again. You might be sat reading a book waiting for the train, or as I really have encountered on more than one occasion, sat on the loo!

A decent system will conspicuously dim for a while before turning off. You still have to wave your arms about, but far more user-friendly than going dark without warning.

 

[beano900]

I noticed this at Edale yesterday. Lights went up a notch when I walked along the platform.

 

[pdeaves]

You might be sat reading a book waiting for the train, or as I really have encountered on more than one occasion, sat on the loo!

Yes, a particular problem where I work; they switch off too quickly.

Perhaps a need for a different sort of 'motion detector'? (sorry... )

 

[alxndr]

A decent system will conspicuously dim for a while before turning off. You still have to wave your arms about, but far more user-friendly than going dark without warning.

Quite a few just dim, they don't go off entirely.