Our team led the design and delivery of Ohio’s first Ecoluminance Roundabout at the intersection of Campbell Road and Napoleon Road in Bowling Green. This innovative concept—developed by the Lighting Research Center at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute—integrates low-level lighting, retroreflective markers, and vegetation to enhance nighttime visibility while minimizing light pollution. The design met ODOT’s illuminance standards while reducing energy use, material costs, and the number of light poles required.

The roundabout was strategically designed to slow traffic from 55 mph to 15 mph and accommodate oversized agricultural equipment with mountable curbs for truck and farm machinery access. The alignment was shifted eastward to avoid impacting a wetland in the northwest quadrant. Utility coordination addressed both overhead and underground conflicts. To address a potential ‘phantom tangent’—where drivers may mistakenly perceive a straight path through the roundabout—the central island was elevated and planted with low-maintenance shrubs, intentionally obscuring opposing approaches and improving driver perception and response.

Geotechnical evaluations of local limestone and shale informed a reliable cost estimate and constructability review. The project was completed on schedule, within 1.4% of the original budget, and without delays or design changes. It successfully improved traffic safety and flow, reduced vehicular emissions, and supported the community’s broader sustainability and environmental stewardship goals.