Glow-in-the-dark roads light up The Netherlands

Yeah, we all know that there are glow-in-the-dark stickers, shirts, and shoes, but is there such a thing as glow-in-the-dark roads? The answer is YES! The Netherlands takes us on a trippy ride as it recently opened the Smart Highway.

What makes it so smart is that it uses glow-in-the-dark road markings instead of streetlights. Driving along this one-of-a-kind highway will remind you of the science-fiction film “Tron”. Just remind yourself that you are not in a video game because you might get carried away and go on full throttle once you’ve hit the road.

The genius behind this project is Daan Roosegaarde, who first conceptualized the new highway design back in 2012. The founder of Studio Roosegaarde collaborated with Heijmans Infrastructure in creating the Route 66 of the future. After going through a lot of government red tape, all their efforts paid off because now we can see their ideas come into life!

In an interview with Wired, Roosegaarde revealed how he came up with the Smart Highway. He said, “One day I was sitting in my car in the Netherlands, and I was amazed by these roads we spend millions on but no one seems to care what they look like and how they behave. I started imagining this Route 66 of the future where technology jumps out of the computer screen and becomes part of us.”

Studio Roosegaarde has more plans for the Smart Highway like weather markings. Imagine snowdrops appearing on the road when the temperature reached a certain level. That would have been awesome, right?

As for now, all we can see are the glow-in-the-dark roads, which Roosegaarde described “it’s almost radioactive.” If you happen to pass by the N329 section near Oss, then you might as well play Imagine Dragons’ “Radioactive” to make your road trip more fun. Oh, and don’t forget to snap some photos because this is a first in the world!

Here’s a clip of Daan Roosegaarde’s interview with CNN: