Educational 18 March 2025
Here’s a sobering statistic: 7,318 people were killed while walking in the U.S. in 2023. While that’s a slight improvement from the previous year, it’s still significantly higher than pre-pandemic levels—and far higher than it should be.
Dig a little deeper, and you’ll find that 72% of these fatalities happened away from signalized intersections, where drivers are less likely to look for and yield to pedestrians. And 77% occurred after dark, underscoring a glaring issue: many roads simply aren’t designed to keep people safe at night.
As communities nationwide look for solutions, midblock crosswalks are proving to be a simple but effective way to enhance pedestrian safety, providing convenient, visible crossing points near schools, shopping centers, and transit stops. But for these crosswalks to truly deliver on their promise, they need the right lighting. And that’s where solar comes in.
A midblock crosswalk is exactly what it sounds like: a designated pedestrian crossing located between intersections rather than at them. These crosswalks help pedestrians cross where they actually want to cross, or as the National Association of City Transportation Officials (NACTO) puts it, “[to get] to places that people want to go but that are not well served by the existing traffic network.”
Midblock crosswalks are increasingly common in urban and suburban environments, particularly in areas with high pedestrian volumes, like schools, parks and recreational facilities, shopping centers, transit stops, and medical facilities.
Unlike crosswalks at intersections, midblock crosswalks are usually unsignalized—meaning there are no traffic lights or pedestrian countdowns to control vehicle movement. Instead, they rely on pavement markings, signage, and sometimes flashing beacons to alert drivers. That’s why proper lighting is critical: without it, pedestrians can be nearly invisible at night.
The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) and Illuminating Engineering Society (IES) have established specific lighting requirements for pedestrian crossings at both intersection and midblock crosswalks.
These standards require vertical illumination (lighting the pedestrian from the side) rather than just horizontal illumination (lighting the pedestrian from above), making many conventional streetlights inadequate for pedestrian safety.
Additionally, many midblock crosswalks are located in areas with underground utilities—water lines, gas pipes, and fiber-optic cables—making trenching for traditional electrical connections a logistical headache. In suburban and rural locations, extending grid power to a crosswalk can mean running conduit for hundreds of feet, driving up costs and drawing out the timeline.
When it comes to pedestrian safety, the right fixture makes all the difference. Traditional streetlights help motorists navigate roads, but crosswalk lighting needs to put pedestrians front and center.
Fixtures like Cyclone Lighting’s Domia are designed specifically for crosswalk applications, featuring optics that improve contrast and deliver strong vertical illumination. By lighting pedestrians from the side rather than the top, these fixtures help people stand out against their surroundings, giving drivers more time to react, while still meeting AASHTO/IES standards.
Pairing these purpose-built fixtures with solar power provides an even more effective and flexible solution. Because solar lighting operates independently of the electrical grid, it can be installed virtually anywhere it’s needed—whether that’s in a newly developed area, a remote location, or a site with existing underground utilities. No trenching, no conduit, no hassle.
This grid-free autonomy makes solar an ideal choice for midblock crosswalks that aren’t conveniently located near power connections. It also streamlines installation, reducing costs and minimizing disruption to traffic and infrastructure.
Solar-powered crosswalk lighting isn’t just a smart solution—it’s a game-changer. By improving pedestrian visibility and eliminating the constraints of traditional grid power, solar lighting helps cities and towns make meaningful safety upgrades quickly and efficiently.
As communities continue investing in pedestrian-friendly infrastructure, solutions like these will play a crucial role in reducing nighttime fatalities and making roadways safer for everyone. Because at the end of the day, everyone deserves to get home safely.
