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Lighting Standards for Parking Facilities

Stop if this sounds familiar: you’re watching a horror movie and one of the characters is walking through a poorly lit parking garage. And then, with the help of shadowy corners and corridors, the boogeyman begins to stalk or chase the character.

But for all the times we’ve watched a horror movie and shaken our heads at a character entering an obviously haunted house or other blatantly sinister environment, it’s hard to argue against going into a parking garage. Afterall, these are the kinds of everyday facilities that people rely on.

While there have been several advancements in technology that can improve a facility’s physical security, simple and cost-efficient lighting upgrades can make a significant impact. Effective lighting in parking facilities can deter trespassers, reveal tripping hazards, and make properties feel safer.

For any owner or operator of a parking area, it’s important to understand the relevant lighting requirements. Although building codes can vary across jurisdictions and regions, at least two organizations have provided standards that all parking facilities can meet to help increase safety and security for users and staff as a baseline.

The Illuminating Engineering Society of North America recommends the following:

  • Have horizontal lighting that falls on sidewalks and other surfaces. Vertical lighting should illuminate surfaces like the sides of buildings.

  • Regular parking lots should maintain a minimum horizontal illuminance of 0.2 footcandles (a unit of measurement for light intensity) and a minimum vertical illuminance of 1 footcandles. (One footcandle is enough to saturate a one-foot area with one lumen of light.)
    • To achieve this level of light intensity, residential and small parking lots generally need 12,000 to 18,000 lumens, while medium-sized commercial areas can require 20,000 to 30,000 lumens.

    • Compare this to homes. Depending on the area and size of the space, it is recommended that residents use lighting of 500 to 10,000 lumens.

  • Parking facilities should also maintain uniform lighting throughout, enhancing the overall visibility for users and staff while diminishing the presence of shadows. The IES recommends a maximum to minimum ratio of lighting levels, which expresses lighting uniformity.
    • Lighting uniformity is how humans perceive how evenly lighting is distributed throughout an area.

    • Regular parking lots should also maintain a uniformity ratio of 20:1 maximum to minimum, meaning there can be 20 times more illumination measured in one area of a parking lot compared to another.

    • For parking facilities that need enhanced security, there should be a minimum horizontal illuminance of 0.5 footcandles, a minimum vertical illuminance of 0.25 footcandles, and a uniformity ratio of 15:1, meaning there can be 15 times more illumination measured in one area of a parking lot compared to another.

Meanwhile, the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) also offers baseline requirements for testing and maintaining some lighting elements in parking facilities.

  • Emergency lighting should provide at least 90 minutes of illumination in the event of a power failure, with lighting turning on within 10 seconds of a power loss.
    • Emergency lights must also provide an average of at least 1 footcandle of illumination along exit avenues for the first 1.5 hours after a power failure. After that time, the lighting level can decline but to no lower than an average of 0.06 footcandles.

  • Emergency lighting should be tested every 30 days for 30 seconds, and once a year for 1.5 hours.

  • Exit lighting in parking facilities should be hardwired by the building’s primary electrical suppliers.

In addition, ASIS International’s Protection of Assets: Physical Security manual provides guidance for parking facility illumination.

Parking structures. These areas are difficult to light since there are few vertical elements to reflect light or provide contrast to moving objects. In some municipalities, building codes require a bright white horizontal stripe on walls, at waist height, to improve contrast. The lack of ceiling clearance restricts the height of luminaires and requires the fixtures to spread the light horizontally. This is excellent for lighting vertical surfaces; however, if video cameras are used, the luminaire design should be selected to reduce glare at the camera lens. A horizontal illuminance level of 5 footcandles with a uniformity ratio of 4:1 provides an adequate level of security.

Open parking.  The height of luminaires is less restricted in open than in covered parking unless local codes and light trespass become factors. The higher light sources tend to provide horizontal illumination. Energy conservative, high-pressure sodium lighting has high efficiency, high lumens per watt, and is cost-effective for open parking. Recommended light levels range from a minimum of 0.2 footcandles in low-activity general parking and pedestrian areas to 2 footcandles in high-activity vehicle areas. Cash collection and vehicular access control areas should be maintained at a minimum of 5 footcandles.

 

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