Coping with darkness: residents’ experience of reduced outdoor lighting in neighbourhoods

Despite ongoing replacement of old lighting installations with new energy-efficient light emitting diodes, the energy crisis has led to the implementation of strategies for reducing energy use for public outdoor lighting in neighbourhood environments. This would save money and reduce light pollution; however, the situations should be evaluated from the residents’ perspective. This paper presents a pilot study, which aimed to explore how residents experience and respond to reduced outdoor lighting in their neighbourhoods during dark hours, by applying the adapted Human-Environment Interaction model to understand the relation between outdoor lighting quality, neighbourhood quality and local independent mobility from the residents’ perspective. The pilot study was based on a short questionnaire (N =76, 29 males, 47 females, Mage = 66.66 years) and telephone or online interviews (N = 13, 5 males, 8 females, Mage = 68.08 years) with the residents living in the neighbourhood areas, in Southern Sweden, where strategies were employed for reducing the use of public outdoor lighting. Data were collected between February and March 2023. Overall, the results affirmed the important role of outdoor lighting quality in residents’ experience of neighbourhood environments and local independent mobility (i.e. the ability of residents to walk or move around on their own in their neighbourhood area), whereas the effect of reduced outdoor lighting was rather insignificant. The interviews further showed different experiences of the reduced outdoor lighting and how the residents coped with the lighting conditions by using solutions (i.e. headlamps, flashlights, bike lamps and reflectors), and that high-level perceived safety from crime in the neighbourhoods was found to play an important role in local independent mobility during dark hours. The adapted conceptual model allowed for the evaluation of outdoor lighting conditions considering both internal and external factors from the residents’ perspective, and could provide a basis for discussion about potential changes in public outdoor lighting.


Introduction
Of the UN's 17 sustainable development goals (SDGs), six of them (3: Good health and well-being, 7: Affordable and clean energy, 11: Sustainable cities and communities, 13: Climate action, 14: Life below water and 15: Life on land) have been identified as having relevant synergies with outdoor lighting [1].This includes various aspects such as human health and well-being, safety, restoration, socialization, ecosystems, biodiversity, and energy efficiency.Besides the replacement of old outdoor lighting with energy-efficient light emitting diodes (LEDs), adaptation strategies, i.e. switching lights off, reducing the number of 'light-on' hours (part-night lighting), and dimming have been employed to reduce the IOP Publishing doi:10.1088/1755-1315/1320/1/012003 2 amount of light [2].There is however, concern that reduced outdoor lighting may influence perceived safety, fear of crime, and mobility [2].This paper presents a pilot study investigating how different adaptation strategies affect residents' experience of their neighbourhood environments and local independent mobility after dark.

Background
Reducing energy use for public outdoor lighting is considered as a solution to the current energy crisis [3].This could reduce light pollution, thereby having positive effects on both human health and the environment.At the same time, this may trigger perceived lack of safety and security, thereby influencing individuals' independent mobility which has broad implications through its impacts on physical, psychological, cognitive, social, and economic parameters [4].Well-designed outdoor lighting is associated with perceived accessibility and perceived safety [5] [6], and is expected to support local independent mobility as well as daily commuting [7] [8].Regarding this, measures applied to reducing public outdoor lighting should be evaluated by considering the user perspective.
Previous research found that white light enhanced perceived safety among pedestrians [9] whereas reduced street lighting may not always decrease perceived safety [2].Today, economic and resource issues represent a major challenge, as they have limited the availability of public outdoor lighting.For example, in South Africa, where load shedding limits the availability of public outdoor lighting in residential areas.In particular, the lighting is implemented, in accordance with the national standards [10] [11], where the safety of the movement of the public is of prime importance, thereby allowing safe and comfortable movement of residents after dark while reducing incidences and criminal activities in the area.Due to the need to reduce energy consumption of municipal assets [12] [13], energy saving strategies consider changing high-intensity discharge (HID) lighting with LED lighting.However, public outdoor lighting of residential areas is exposed to the effects of load shedding (i.e. the lighting is programmed to operate at night within set minimum hours for specific days during the week); as a result of the strained network, municipal areas are forced to disconnect from the national electrical grid to assist in stabilising it [14].Load shedding can be scheduled for periods of 2 hours up to 6 hours at a time per day, depending on the status of the national electrical grid.Together, lower lighting levels for more energy savings and periods of darkness caused from load shedding do impact residents' experiences.Regarding this, the effect of reduced outdoor lighting is seen to be of importance in residential areas, particularly where residents have limited service infrastructure, limited access to electricity to homes, have to commute long distances on foot to public transport depots (leaving homes before sunrise and returning home after sunset), and where residents are exposed to criminal activities.Furthermore, the absence of light would limit residents' social activities and/or community activities after dark while increasing criminal activities that may result in damaging the electrical infrastructure to sustain darkness in such areas.
Though it may not always occur, the reduced outdoor lighting due to load shedding could, based on Steinbach et al. [2], be considered similar to the part-night strategy which has generally been applied to outdoor lighting reductions.By increasing knowledge about the role of reduced public outdoor lighting in local independent mobility, it would serve as a basis for better understanding and discussing the potential changes of outdoor lighting considering both human experience and energy use.

Conceptual framework
In this paper, residents' local independent mobility is defined as the ability of residents to walk or move around on their own in their neighbourhood area.Based on Mattsson et al. [15] (after Küller [16]), local independent mobility results from individuals' interaction with their environment.Such individualenvironment interaction involves characteristics of the individuals' internal factors (e.g.abilities and psychological determinants) and physical and social characteristics of the environment (external factors), and is mediated by the individuals' emotional responses to the environment.The environment's physical characteristics are associated with outdoor lighting and its effects on the environment, and the social characteristics are associated with the perception of safety and security.It is suggested that no direct link between the environmental factor like a certain light level and local independent mobility can be expected.Instead, this relationship rather involves the emotional process from activation (i.e. the situation where a certain stimulus activates the individual's emotional system) to attention/orientation and evaluation (i.e.paying attention to the stimulus and its quality), and to control over the situation (i.e.adopting coping strategies) [17] [16].The interplay of internal and external factors influencing residents' experience of their neighbourhood area and local independent mobility during dark hours could be described through the Human-Environment Interaction model adapted from Marcheschi et al. [17] (Figure 1).

Aim
This paper presents a pilot study investigating residents' experience of reduced public outdoor lighting in neighbourhoods considering different adaptation strategies.The aim was to explore how the lighting situations affect residents' experience of their neighbourhoods and local independent mobility during dark hours.It was assumed that through the emotional process, humans would have vast capabilities to adapt to and cope with changes in the physical environment, and manage their everyday life, and there would be potential changes in the outdoor lighting due to limited resources.The underlying purpose of this pilot study was to evaluate the conceptual framework for further studies that may be conducted in different physical locations and social contexts.

Method
This pilot study was based on a short questionnaire and telephone or online interviews with residents living in four neighbourhood areas in two municipalities in Southern Sweden where two adaptation strategies have been employed to reduce the use of public outdoor lighting during autumn-winter 2022/2023.The strategies were i) part-night lighting or reducing 'light-on' hours (one hour less than usual, i.e. switching on 30 minutes later and switching off 30 minutes earlier) implemented in one neighbourhood area, and ii) switching off one-third of street lamps in another three neighbourhood areas.
The two municipalities informed the residents about the outdoor lighting reductions through their respective official municipal websites and/or local newspapers.The sources of public outdoor lighting in the areas were HPS light sources (with a CCT of about 1,700 Kelvin and a CRI of about Ra11, and a CCT of about 1,700 Kelvin and a CRI of Ra 30) and LED light sources (with a CCT of 2,500 K, and a CRI of Ra70, and a CCT of 4,000 K and a CRI of Ra 75) which replaced the existing HPSs or were recently installed (Figure 2).The average horizontal illuminance (Eh) values on paths at ground level were 4.63 lx for the HPS lighting and about 3.43 lx for the LED lighting in the neighbourhood area with the part-night lighting strategy, and 3.33 lux in the neighbourhood areas where one-third of street lamps were switched off.The minimum Eh value measured on the paths was 0.00 lx.(The measurements were conducted by the researcher (the first author) using Konica Minolta CRI Illuminance Meter CL-70F).
The invitations to participate in the study were sent by post together with the questionnaires and return envelopes (residents' names and addresses were retrieved through a public online database).Data were collected between February and March 2023, and the participation was voluntary.The questionnaire (Table 1) was in Swedish and contained five questions with nine rating scale items.The questions were related to residents' (i) perceptions of lighting quality regarding brightness, pleasantness and visibility, (ii) experience of neighbourhood quality after dark regarding safety, security, pleasantness and friendliness, and (iii) local independent mobility, i.e. avoidance of being outside alone and preference for company when going outside in one's own neighbourhood during dark hours in winter 2022/2023.The responses were given on five-point rating scales.(1) too dark -too bright (5) (1) unpleasant -pleasant (5) 2. How well can you see with the outdoor lighting in your neighbourhood after dark, during this winter (winter 2022/2023)?
(1) very bad -very good (5) (ii) Experience of neighbourhood quality 3. How do you experience your neighbourhood when it is dark, during this winter (winter 2022/2023)?

Data analysis.
By using IBM SPSS statistics 28, Spearman's correlations (with exclude cases pairwise) were performed to examine associations between perceptions of lighting quality, experience of neighbourhood quality, and local independent mobility during dark hours among the residents in the four neighbourhood areas.Further, a Mann-Whitney U test was used to test whether they were any differences between the two neighbourhood areas having different adaptation strategies to reduce the use of outdoor lighting.The non-parametric tests were applied since the p value obtained in normality tests, Shapiro-Wilk tests, was < 0.001 for all variables indicating non-normal distributions of the data.

Interview
Nine interviews were conducted with a total of 13 participants (five males, eight females, ages between 40 and 82 years, mean age was 68.08 years) who agreed to participate (four of the interviews were conducted with two participants at the same time).Of 13 participants, four lived in the neighbourhood area where the part-night lighting strategy (i.e.reducing light-on hours) was employed (Neighbourhood 1).The rest lived in neighbourhood areas where the switching off strategy (i.e.switching off one-third of street lamps) was employed (eight lived in Neighbourhood 2, and one lived in Neighbourhood 4).

2.2.1.
Procedure.All the participants gave oral informed consent to the participation and the audio recording before being interviewed.The participants were first asked about their impression of their respective neighbourhoods during dark hours in winter 2022/2023, whether they notice good or bad things, whether there are pleasant and/or unpleasant passages or places, and whether and to what extent the light conditions affect their daily life, particularly in their decision to walk, bike, or be outside during dark hours, and how do they manage their daily activities (Table 3).The interviews lasted for between 15 and 35 minutes.

Data analysis.
The audio recordings of the interviews were transcribed (by the first author).The textual material was analysed by means of a deductive thematic approach [18] to map the participants' responses and discussions about their neighbourhood areas during dark hours onto the adapted Human-Environment Interaction model.The data were coded manually based on their alignment with the internal and external factors influencing the experiences of their own neighbourhoods and local independent mobility (Figure 1).When statements aligned with several factors, they were coded under each of the factors.Then, the codes were analysed by examining patterns on how the participants expressed their views and/or discussed in relation to each factor and the relationships between them.

Results
The results obtained from questionnaires and interviews are presented separately.The residents' perceptions of lighting quality, experience of neighbourhood quality, and local independent mobility during dark hours obtained from the questionnaires are first presented, followed by the internal and external factors influencing local independent mobility obtained from the interviews.

Lighting quality, neighbourhood quality and local independent mobility
Spearmans' correlations yielded strong associations among lighting quality, neighbourhood quality and local independent mobility (the correlations were at the 0.01 level).In particular, there was a very strong association between perceived safety of neighbourhoods and local independent mobility i.e. the residents would not avoid going or being outside in their neighbourhoods alone during dark hours (r = -0.71,N = 76, p < 0.001).
Between the two neighbourhoods with the different adaptation strategies to reduce the use of public outdoor lighting, there were statistically significant differences in the scores for the residents' perceptions of lighting quality and experience of neighbourhood quality, whereas the differences in local independent mobility were not statistically significant (Table 4).In general, the residents in both neighbourhoods reported that they would not avoid going or being outside during dark hours and their preferences for company were rather neutral.The lighting quality and the neighbourhood quality of Neighbourhood 1 (where the 'light-on' hours were reduced) were rated as significantly higher than those of Neighbourhood 2 (where one-third of street lamps were turned off).

Factors influencing local independent mobility during dark hours
In line with the adapted Human-Environment Interaction model, the results of the deductive thematic analysis describing internal and external factors influencing local independent mobility during dark hours are presented below.

Activity. Taking a daily walk, biking to work, and running are activities in relation to local
independent mobility mentioned by the participants.A couple of the participants usually take their dogs for daily walks when it is dark outside, two participants often bike, and two participants mentioned about going out for a run after dark during the winter season.

Individual characteristics.
Most of individual characteristics that the participants addressed could be coded as age, habits, familiarity with the place, gender, and previous experience.One participant (aged over 80 years) emphasized ageing as an important internal factor limiting local independent mobility, i.e. s/he always remains home after dark, which could be considered as a habit, and only goes outside in the neighbourhood when necessary.Two participants (aged over 70 years) mentioned worse night vision and balance due to old age.In relation to local independent mobility after dark, participants mentioned different habits, such as going for a walk, taking their dogs for an evening walk, and, on the other hand, rarely going outside after dark because of having no dog or old age, biking and rarely biking, driving to get groceries, and running every evening.Most of them have habits of having reflectors and/or own flashlights and bike lights when going outside.Familiarity with own neighbourhood was expressed by participants, mostly through perceived safety from crime, which is somewhat associated with the length of residence.The role of gender was reflected by one female participant (aged 40 years) in relation to previous experience of living in a big city with nightlife, socio-economic disadvantaged areas, and unmaintained parks and paths.A couple of participants mentioned their previous experience of burglary in their own place or a neighbour's that could be associated with outdoor lighting situations and concealed the view of the house.

Physical characteristics of the environment.
In this study, physical characteristics are associated with outdoor lighting and its effects on the neighbourhood area after dark during the winter season.With the focus on outdoor lighting, physical characteristics mentioned and discussed by the participants could be coded as uneven lighting distribution, strength quality and comfort quality of the lit environment, and dim light and darkness.
Uneven lighting distribution was mentioned and discussed both positively and negatively.Dark areas between light poles were perceived as hindering visibility, particularly in case of obstacles or holes on the way.Conversely, such areas were also perceived as providing opportunities to see contrasts in the environment in the dark and to rest the eyes.Strength quality and comfort quality of the lit environment were often mentioned with regard to two main light sources giving cool lighting (LEDs) and warm lighting (HPS) in the neighbourhoods.Most participants stated that they prefer the latter yellow lighting, which was described as more pleasant, softer, cosier, evenly distributed, no glaring, and at the same time, providing acceptable lighting levels.LED lighting installed in the areas was, on the other hand, generally described as giving more direct, brighter, and cooler lighting, glaring as well as limiting the opportunity to experience greenery and natural surroundings.Similarly, participants' responses to dim light and darkness are both positive and negative.A couple of participants (aged over 70 years) mentioned that the dim light in their neighbourhood has resulted in reduced visibility (particularly when they need to observe along the way and see ahead).Increased risk of falling was often stated by most participants.However, positive effects of dim light and darkness were also brought up (i.e.opportunities to experience nature at dawn, dusk and night).Further, one participant addressed the need to allow darkness to promote nature experiences and relaxation, which are considered as important to well-being, and to protect biodiversity.
Further, the physical characteristics could be coded as pleasantness of the neighbourhoods and special features including both built and natural features.Pleasantness was reflected in relation to both positive perceptions (i.e.cosiness and harmony of the neighbourhood) and negative perceptions (i.e.perceived risks of falling and encountering obstacles and/or other road users).Special features, both built and natural features of the neighbourhoods, were discussed in relation to the current situations and future design of public outdoor lighting considering physical contexts and everyday users.For example, a participant living in Neighbourhood 2, with narrow roads and alleys, pointed out that public outdoor lighting should be planned by taking appearances of the built environment as well as residential density into account, and expressed his/her satisfaction with the reduced outdoor lighting in the neighbourhood.A couple of participants living in Neighbourhood 1, close to nature, have recognised the interplay between outdoor lighting and greenery and/or natural features, and mentioned that their perceptions of the lit environment and visual accessibility were negatively affected by unkempt greenery in their neighbourhood.

Social characteristics of the environment.
The social characteristics are associated with the perceptions of safety as well as security in the neighbourhoods.Most participants stated that they feel very safe (from crime).Some participants emphasised that calmness and friendliness of the neighbourhoods play important roles in their perceived safety from crime.However, some participants mentioned their previous experiences of burglary, either in their own place or a neighbour's, that could IOP Publishing doi:10.1088/1755-1315/1320/1/0120039 be associated with the reduced outdoor lighting, thereby being worried that the number of burglaries could increase.

Basic emotional process.
Based on the Human-Environmental Interaction model, the relation between internal factors, external factors, and local independent mobility is mediated by basic emotional process from activation to attention/orientation, evaluation and control over the situation, which, in this study, is the reduced outdoor lighting.
Participants experienced the changes in outdoor lighting in their neighbourhoods and were activated differently by the lighting conditions.For Neighbourhood 2, where one-third of street lamps in the areas were off, participants stated that they have experienced their neighbourhood area as 'darker'.In other word, their attention has been paid to the dimly lit environment which, for a couple of participants, has influenced mobility choices (e.g.driving a car, biking or walking).
"For me, to walk is easier than to bike under this lighting condition /…./ because even with bike lamps, ones can still miss if some (other road users) are coming, bike lamps also have their limits" (Interview 2, female, over 70) Their evaluations of the reduced outdoor lighting were found to vary from uncomfortable, unpleasant, to pleasant.Participants (aged over 70) often expressed their concern about limited vision due to the reduced outdoor lighting, making it unpleasant to go outside.However, a couple of them experienced the reduction of public outdoor lighting as sufficient and better in combination with outdoor lighting from house facades, yards, as well as with indoor lighting from windows, since the houses in the area are placed along narrow roads and alleys.One participant also observed that the neighbours had Christmas lights for a longer period than usual, and mentioned that this might be due to the reduced outdoor lighting.
"I do not have any problem about this 'dark' (because of the reduced public outdoor lighting), it feels good./…./.I always get disturbed by so many lights, façade lights, it is too bright so I think that it is better when it gets darker in the area" (Interview 6, male, aged over 70) In general, participants stated that the reduced public outdoor lighting has no significant role in their daily activities and decision to go outside after dark.Participants who usually go outside for evening walks have headlamps or flashlights with them and therefore are able to exert control over the situation.One participant has also observed that others who take their dogs to walk when it is dark usually use this solution.Moreover, a couple of participants (aged over 70) stressed that they have paid more attention to their surroundings, and the importance of being able to see and be seen (by having reflectors and light colour jackets).Participants who have dogs usually put on reflectors or lamps on their dogs.This could also be considered as a regular practice or habit but the participants have become more careful.
"I have a flashlight with me because I am afraid of falling when I cannot see well /…./.I become more careful to have reflectors and 'well-seen' clothes when going outside, the same solutions have been applied to the dog (laughing), so the dog is shining, we usually do this and now we think more about it" (Interview 1, male, aged over 70) For Neighbourhood 1, where 'light-on' hours have been reduced, two participants stated that they have experienced this change in their neighbourhood area.Also, attention has been paid to the walkway in which LED lamps have newly been placed in the area.Regarding evaluations, the participants did not express any negative emotional responses to the reduced light-on time, whereas there were both positive and negative responses to the path with new LED lamps.With the cooler and brighter lighting, this path has been experienced by the participants (aged over 65 years) as well-lit.The participants (aged between 50 and 60 years) perceive the lighting as too bright, cool, and glaring, making the environment unpleasant.Moreover, one participant has perceived the bright lighting as focused and, thereby, making the surroundings disappear from her/his view.
IOP Publishing doi:10.1088/1755-1315/1320/1/01200310 "When lighting is bright like along the path with new LED lamps, you see only the lighting on the path well but instead the surroundings are cold dark so you do not have 'distance vision' and personally, I think that it is scarier.I want to see my surroundings but cannot do it with bright lights" (Interview 5, female, aged between 50 and 60 years) Further, the reduced light-on time has no significant role in the residents' daily activities and decision to go outside after dark.One participant mentioned that there are not many weeks to go through this situation.Another participant specifically expressed that s/he appreciates the darkness when biking to work in the morning, and running outside using bike lamps and headlamps respectively, to have control over the situation.The path with new LED lamps was mentioned as having bright-cool lighting, and the participant usually avoid this path when biking.The darkness has been appreciated and is not negatively perceived with respect to neighbourhood safety (from crime).
"I usually get up early and bike to work, and I have come to appreciate the darkness that is why I avoid that path (with new LED lamps).It feels strange to have bright lights in this darkness" (Interview 8, male, aged between 50 and 60 years) "I understand the argument about the role of (outdoor) lighting in (neighbourhood) safety but I feel really safe in this area /…./.This is different from traffic safety that requires you to see well" (Interview 8, male, aged between 50 and 60 years)

Discussion
This pilot study aimed to explore how reduced public outdoor lighting affects residents' experiences of neighbourhoods and local independent mobility during dark hours.Using the Human-Environment Interaction model (adapted from Marcheschi et al. [17]) as a framework, the factors influencing local independent mobility were investigated and discussed from the residents' perspective.It is expected that the framework can be applied for investigating the effects of outdoor lighting situations in different physical locations and social contexts.The study was carried out through a short questionnaire, followed by qualitative interviews.Together, the findings could serve as a basis for discussion to identify potential adaptation strategies for reducing public outdoor lighting and improving outdoor lighting design in residential areas to face the current energy crisis and environmental challenges.
The questionnaire results affirmed associations between outdoor lighting quality, neighbourhood quality and local independent mobility, particularly between perceived safety of the neighbourhood and local independent mobility.Considering the adaptation strategies employed to reduce the use of public outdoor lighting, it was obvious that switching off one-third of street lamps resulted in greater effects on lighting quality and neighbourhood quality compared to reducing light-on hours.When switching off one-third of the lamps, the neighbourhood area was generally perceived as darker (than usual) and the lighting was perceived as unevenly distributed.However, there were no significant effects on local independent mobility between the two adaptation strategies.The participants generally reported that they would not avoid going or being outside during dark hours and their preferences for company were rather neutral.Reducing light-on time (switching on 30 minutes later and switching off 30 minutes earlier than usual) did not seem to have significant impacts, however longer 'light-off' hours (which could be considered similar to the lighting situation affected by load shedding) may give different results.
The questionnaire results on the residents' perceptions of neighbourhood quality are, to some degree, in line with the interviews with respect to the perceived safety.The darker lit environment and unevenly distributed lighting due to the switching off strategy (i.e.switching off one-third of street lamps) have affected the residents' perceived safety (i.e.risk of falling).Though these lighting conditions have limited visual accessibility, a couple of participants in Neighbourhood 2 were also satisfied with the outdoor lighting in combination with the lighting from private residences in their neighbourhood.This is because the area has detached or semi-detached houses along narrow roads and alleys.There were negative effects of unkempt greenery on perceived lighting quality and visual accessibility mentioned by a few participants.This finding supports a previous study [19] which suggested a relationship between outdoor lighting conditions and greenery, and the effects of the interaction between them on neighbourhood experience with regard to perceived safety and local independent mobility.In general, the results indicate that the two adaptation strategies employed for reducing public outdoor lighting have not significantly affected the residents' local independent mobility during dark hours.Despite no significant effects on local independent mobility, the lighting conditions seem to influence mobility choices and also walking route choices in this pilot study.To improve visual accessibility and have control over the reduced outdoor lighting, it was found that the residents use headlamps, flashlights, bike lamps, and reflectors as solutions.It can thus be assumed that the individuals have adapted to and coped with the changes in the physical environment, and managed their daily activities.It should also be noted that the neighbourhoods in this study have been perceived as safe (from crime) which possibly promotes local independent mobility.However, there have been concerns around burglary that may increase due to the reduced outdoor lighting, and whether solutions such as headlamps or flashlights are sustainable considering environmental and economic aspects.
In the interviews, a number of participants expressed concern about LED lighting in the neighbourhoods with both adaptation strategies since the lighting was perceived as unpleasant (e.g.too bright, cold, glaring, as well as limiting an opportunity to experience nature and surroundings).This finding is in line with previous field studies in Northern European contexts (e.g.[15] [20] [21)) that reported a mismatch between perceived comfort or pleasantness and perceived strength of LED lighting.As mentioned by the participants, special features and characteristics of the neighbourhoods, residents' daily activities, and the importance of nature experience and biodiversity should be considered when designing public outdoor lighting.However, it has been suggested that switching to LED lighting may facilitate crime prevention in an area [13]; this is of high relevance to high crime areas.
Through the lens of the conceptual framework (adapted from Marcheschi et al., [17]), this pilot study showed that the residents have coped with the changes (i.e.reduced outdoor lighting) in the physical environment (the respective neighbourhood areas) to support their local independent mobility as well as daily activities as a result of the interplay between individuals, emotional processes, and physical and social characteristics of the neighbourhoods.High-level perceived safety from crime associated with the social characteristics was found to play an important role in local independent mobility during dark hours, while the perceived risks of falling and encountering obstacles and/or other road users could be coped with through the different solutions.By applying the conceptual framework, the outdoor lighting conditions could be evaluated from the residents' perspective, taking internal and external factors influencing local independent mobility during dark hours into account.This pilot study was able to shed light on the effects of different adaptation strategies and to provide a basis for discussion about potential changes in public outdoor lighting considering limited resources.To improve public outdoor lighting, more studies are needed on the effects of different adaptation strategies in different physical locations and social contexts.This would pave the way towards new outdoor lighting design approaches to satisfy the needs as well as preferences of users while simultaneously balancing the different aspects of sustainability.

Figure 1 .
Figure 1.The conceptual model for understanding residents' local independent mobility during dark hours (adapted from Marcheschi et al. [17])

Figure 2 .
Figure 2. Examples of public outdoor lighting in the studied neighbourhoods: HPS lighting (a) and LED lighting with a CCT of 2,500 K, and a CRI of Ra70 (b), and with a CCT of 4,000 K and a CRI of Ra 75 (c) (the first author)

Table 1 .
Questionnaire questions, items and response scales (translated from Swedish)

Table 2 .
Questionnaire and response rate

Table 3 .
Interview guide (translated from Swedish) Have you noticed anything particularly good or bad in your neighbourhood when it is dark, during this winter (winter 2022/2023)?-Are there any particular unpleasant places or passageways in your neighbourhood in which you avoid after dark, during this winter?-On the other hand, are there any pleasant places or passageways in your neighbourhood after dark, during this winter?3.Do the situations of outdoor lighting in the neighbourhood during this winter (winter 2022/2023) have any effects on your daily routines or activities?-How?-Do the situations of outdoor lighting affect your decision to go, bike, or be outside in your neighbourhood after dark?4.How do you manage your daily activities when it is dark, during this winter (winter 2022/2023)?-Have you changed any of your daily activities due to the situations of outdoor lighting in your neighbourhood?-Could you further explain about the change(s) you have made?