Experiences of after-dark urban forest walks when using head torches : off-the-shelf vs customised
Tsiakiris, Georgios LU
; Rahm, Johan
LU
; Besenecker, Ute
; Hedblom, Marcus
; Eizadi, Hamidreza
; Persson, Eva
LU
and Johansson, Maria
LU
(2027)
In Journal of Urban Management
16(1).
- Abstract
During the dark season, electric lighting in urban forests can facilitate recreational activities and psychological restoration. However, the permanent presence of electric lighting causes light pollution, with detrimental effects for people and wildlife. This study explored the extent to which head torches could support pedestrian needs in a Nordic context where daylight hours are reduced during the winter season. The aim was to compare the pedestrian appraisal of an urban forest path under different lighting conditions: daylight (DL); regular off-the-shelf head torches (OHT); and customised head torches (CHT), with reduced light distribution and thereby less light pollution. The 75 participants completed structured walks with... (More)
During the dark season, electric lighting in urban forests can facilitate recreational activities and psychological restoration. However, the permanent presence of electric lighting causes light pollution, with detrimental effects for people and wildlife. This study explored the extent to which head torches could support pedestrian needs in a Nordic context where daylight hours are reduced during the winter season. The aim was to compare the pedestrian appraisal of an urban forest path under different lighting conditions: daylight (DL); regular off-the-shelf head torches (OHT); and customised head torches (CHT), with reduced light distribution and thereby less light pollution. The 75 participants completed structured walks with observer-based environmental assessments on site by means of questionnaires under DL, OHT or CHT light conditions. The results showed that participants experienced (appraised) the urban forest path similarly in the two head torch conditions in terms of visual accessibility, perceived safety, and the restorative potential of the forest setting. The behavioural intention to choose the path did not differ between head torches, but the intention to avoid the path was lower with OHT. No differences in comfort aspects of the light could be identified. As expected, the urban forest was rated higher for the environmental appraisals in DL, but retained its restorative potential even in the two head torch conditions. It is concluded that light sources with less ecological impact could be introduced without influencing pedestrians’ environmental experiences negatively.
(Less)
- author
- Tsiakiris, Georgios
LU
; Rahm, Johan
LU
; Besenecker, Ute
; Hedblom, Marcus
; Eizadi, Hamidreza
; Persson, Eva
LU
and Johansson, Maria
LU
- organization
- publishing date
- 2027-02
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- keywords
- Daylight, Head torch, Restorative potential, Structured walks, Urban forest
- in
- Journal of Urban Management
- volume
- 16
- issue
- 1
- article number
- 100540
- pages
- 15 pages
- publisher
- Elsevier
- external identifiers
-
- scopus:105046087066
- ISSN
- 2226-5856
- DOI
- 10.1016/j.jum.2026.100540
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- 6c19e1dd-3fee-4fa2-a881-0b5e12558ef7
- date added to LUP
- 2026-10-14 16:00:01
- date last changed
- 2026-10-19 11:19:07
@article{6c19e1dd-3fee-4fa2-a881-0b5e12558ef7,
abstract = {{<p>During the dark season, electric lighting in urban forests can facilitate recreational activities and psychological restoration. However, the permanent presence of electric lighting causes light pollution, with detrimental effects for people and wildlife. This study explored the extent to which head torches could support pedestrian needs in a Nordic context where daylight hours are reduced during the winter season. The aim was to compare the pedestrian appraisal of an urban forest path under different lighting conditions: daylight (DL); regular off-the-shelf head torches (OHT); and customised head torches (CHT), with reduced light distribution and thereby less light pollution. The 75 participants completed structured walks with observer-based environmental assessments on site by means of questionnaires under DL, OHT or CHT light conditions. The results showed that participants experienced (appraised) the urban forest path similarly in the two head torch conditions in terms of visual accessibility, perceived safety, and the restorative potential of the forest setting. The behavioural intention to choose the path did not differ between head torches, but the intention to avoid the path was lower with OHT. No differences in comfort aspects of the light could be identified. As expected, the urban forest was rated higher for the environmental appraisals in DL, but retained its restorative potential even in the two head torch conditions. It is concluded that light sources with less ecological impact could be introduced without influencing pedestrians’ environmental experiences negatively.</p>}},
author = {{Tsiakiris, Georgios and Rahm, Johan and Besenecker, Ute and Hedblom, Marcus and Eizadi, Hamidreza and Persson, Eva and Johansson, Maria}},
issn = {{2226-5856}},
keywords = {{Daylight; Head torch; Restorative potential; Structured walks; Urban forest}},
language = {{eng}},
number = {{1}},
publisher = {{Elsevier}},
series = {{Journal of Urban Management}},
title = {{Experiences of after-dark urban forest walks when using head torches : off-the-shelf vs customised}},
url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jum.2026.100540}},
doi = {{10.1016/j.jum.2026.100540}},
volume = {{16}},
year = {{2027}},
}