Smart Lighting Management System

The Highways Department (HyD) is striving to explore an effective solution to monitor the operational status of each lighting point in the public lighting system. The Internet-of-things (IoT) technology, which is growing in sophistication, has been adopted after studying to construct the Smart Lighting Management System (SLMS) so as to tackle the limitations of the current public lighting system.

In the past, there was not any automatic feedback mechanism in the public lighting system to report device failures. The abnormalities of the public lighting points had to be acknowledged via manual inspection or relevant notifications from the general public. However, the SLMS can monitor the real time operating parameters of each lighting point, and track the healthiness of the public lighting system. When there are abnormal operating parameters detected, the system will instantly send fault alerts to the maintenance staff, facilitating fault investigation and rectification. In addition, the SLMS can effectively reduce the downtime of the public lighting points, enhancing the quality of the public lighting services as well as reducing public complaints.

The remote monitoring feature of the SLMS can effectively reduce the manpower resources required for manual inspections, and the frequency of night scouting for the public lighting system, facilitating the reallocation of limited resources to other alternative work.

The SLMS allows maintenance staff to access the historical operating parameters and fault records of each lighting point, enabling much accurate forecast on the performance development and making preemptive maintenance or replacement possible. It helps prioritize preventive maintenance and ensure effective utilization of resources.

Moreover, in the past, the illumination level of road lights could only be adjusted manually. The SLMS allows remote adjustment of dimming profiles of each lighting point according to the preset time schedules and actual needs, etc., enhancing the energy efficiency of the public lighting system effectively.

Starting 2022, the HyD has been progressively rolling out the SLMS for the whole public lighting system in Hong Kong, so as to enhance the performance and service level. The SLMS has been implemented on Hong Kong Island since February 2025. It is expected that the SLMS will cover all public lighting points in Kowloon / New Territories East and New Territories West in the 1st quarter of 2026 and the 1st quarter of 2027 respectively. In essence, the introduction of SLMS leads the public lighting services of Hong Kong into the smart era.