Does lighting contribute to the reassurance of pedestrians at night-time in residential roads?

One of the reasons why road lighting may be installed in residential areas is to increase pedestrian reassurance, their confidence when walking alone at night, which in past studies has been addressed under the label of perceived safety or fear of crime. This article reviews existing literature examining the possible effects of street lighting on pedestrian reassurance in residential streets. Such data would allow better understanding of whether lighting is effective, and of whether variations in lighting conditions such as illuminance and lamp type, are effective at improving reassurance. While several studies have suggested that lighting affects reassurance it is possible that fear of crime is exaggerated by the procedure with which it is measured. Placing lighting in the overall context of reassurance at night time, by the consideration of other attributes such as spatial features, familiarity and the presence of other people, gives a holistic picture of the pedestrian experience. A pilot study was carried out using an alternative method for determination of whether lighting can aid reassurance in residential roads, with the aims of understanding firstly what is important for pedestrian reassurance, and then assessing whether this affected by light. This should form a realistic basis from which to recommend design criteria for residential roads.