Highways and national roads play an important role in the economic development of Wallonia, the southern region of Belgium. The quality and safety of roads are essential for the growth of businesses.

Wallonia’s road lighting, installed 30 to 40 years ago, is reaching the end of its life. The sodium light bulbs currently in use are being phased out. No replacement sodium bulbs will be available after 2020.

This means that Wallonia’s whole road lighting infrastructure must be redesigned and replaced, including the bulbs, transformers, distribution lines and lamp posts.

Under a project called “Plan Lumière 4.0,” smart LED bulbs will be installed along 2,700 kilometres of highways and secondary roads. Some 100,000 street lamps will be replaced. Using LED lighting for roads is not widespread in Europe, though it is gathering momentum, driven by better technology and lower prices. LEDs save 30% to 50% in energy costs, compared to the high-pressure sodium bulbs used in Wallonia.

The project will save an estimated 35 GW of power per year, equivalent to the energy consumption of 7,500 households. In addition, LED lighting turns on and off rapidly and is easily dimmable, which can save even more energy.

Proper road lighting is critical for driver safety. Belgian data show that good motorway lighting can reduce accidents by 7%, which is a reduction of four fatalities and 92 injuries per year in Wallonia.

The project will be implemented under a public-private partnership between Société Régionale Wallonne de Financement Complémentaire des Infrastructures, known as Sofico, and a private partner that will build and manage the road lighting network.

As part of preparations for a public-private partnership proposal, there is a need to study the condition of the lighting network, mainly the lamps, transformers and underground infrastructure, to give potential bidders a true picture of the work required. The Advisory Hub’s technical assistance will help bidders in their asset inventory, evaluate the need for the replacement of the infrastructure and ensure that the costs of repairs are estimated properly, leading to more accurate evaluations and offers representing better value for money.