Sustainable road to road safety

In the road scene, we see an increase in the use of the glass bulb as a road surface reflector. The glass bulb is certainly not new, but the attention for it has never stagnated. Especially now that more and more attention is being paid to the sustainability story and light pollution, this could be an ideal solution.

Ever since 1993, Van Wylick Wegdekreflectoren BV has been the specialist in the field of glass bulb reflectors. Introduced in a concrete tile as 'The Van Wylick Stone', the glass bulb reflector already provided a safe situation on the road back then. Now, 26 years later, the company has grown into an experienced family business. "The product is still very much up to date," says Lisette van Wylick, daughter of founder Chris van Wylick, and working in the company. As an active member of the 'Horizontal Markings' standards committee, Lisette -as a delegate from the Netherlands- attends the European meetings. "In this way, we are committed to contributing to a standard that includes proper assessment of glass pavement reflectors."

The strongest glass bulb reflector (compressive strength as much as 80 tons).

Preserve

Van Wylick finds that there is an increasing focus in the current debate on how to become more sustainable as a municipality or province. How do you save on energy costs and reduce CO₂ emissions, in compliance with the Nature Protection Act and without compromising on road safety? Van Wylick does have an answer to that: "Depending on the situation, it may be possible to dim or even switch off public lighting by applying our LUX glass bulb reflectors! This is also how we respond to the wishes of the Nature Protection Act in terms of light pollution: reflectors when necessary and then nice and dark again, as it should be."

Abroad, as here on a highway, glass bulb reflectors have been used for some time.

Safety first

"Glass globes are highly visible in the dark, as well as in rain or in bright sunlight. They are already widely used on highways in various countries. Within the Netherlands it is mainly the provinces of Flevoland and Overijssel that already apply the glass bulb reflectors as standard. While other provinces only use them at specific locations such as traffic circles. It would be a great development if the ongoing research of the knowledge platform showed that our glass bulbs actually play a major role in the safety and illumination of public roads," says Van Wylick. "If there are guidelines for that, no doubt several provinces will follow."

Schiphol exit, application of LUX glass bulb reflectors for maximum road safety in sharp curves.

The Lux glass bulb reflectors, the perfect solution for carriageway or driving direction separation

"Glass globes reflect 360 degrees, are highly visible in the dark, as well as in rain or in bright sunlight." Van Wylick continues: "They require no maintenance because the solid glass does not attract dirt and stays clean through rain. Often a film of water forms on the road surface when it rains; however, our glass bulb reflectors are not affected by this and remain perfectly visible." The impact strength of the LUX glass bulb reflectors is enormous (as much as 80 tons) and thus permanently surmountable, and resistant to snow plows provided that rubber is used for shoveling. "It has been experimentally proven that in normal use they survive the asphalt, do not let go and - very important in the context of traffic safety - retain their reflection."

A special machine from Van Wylick ensures high production in the precise placement of the LUX glass bulb reflectors, deployed here on the N35 state highway.

Fast and skilled assembly with in-house developed machine

Using a specially developed machine, Van Wylick provides fast, professional and accurate installation of glass balls in asphalt and concrete elements (see cover photo).