When the dusk gives way to nightfall, small streets and alleys across Da Nang are lit up with colourful and shimmer lighting system. Notably, the two banks of the Han River look like a galaxy in the night sky in Da Nang, making the city more beautiful and impressive in the eyes of millions of visitors from near and far, as well as inspire pride in in the heart of local people in one of the most desirable places to live in Viet Nam.

Street lights and brightly lit buildings make the city look like a shimmering galaxy at night. Photo: HUYNH VAN TRUYEN

It can be said that the public lighting system is necessary to reflect a developed urban area that showcases professional development in such fields as health care, education, culture, and infrastructure. At the same time, it is an indirect way to promote the development of local trade, culture, tourism and economy, contributing to improving the quality of local people's lives.

Gorgeous colors

During the daytime, the city is beautiful, but sparkling lights from public lighting system, high-rise buildings and properties along the Han River make the city look so beautiful and welcoming at night. The city’s streets are decorated splendidly with coloured lights, thereby inspiring tourists to stay longer.

Mr. Nguyen Huu Quyen,35, a programmer in Da Nang, said that he has traveled to many places across the country, to more than 30 countries/territories around the world, and have worked in Japan for nearly 7 years. He remarked that Da is a very unique city and that not many places in the world can be compared with it. Da Nang is like a rough pearl and it becomes brighter, more beautiful and more special than any other places in the world after it is honed day by day. Hence, every time Mr. Quyen returns to his hometown in Da Nang, he can take a stroll around the city, enjoy the fresh air and beauty of streets along the Han River such as Bach Dang, Tran Hung Dao, September 2, Nhu Nguyet, or along Vo Nguyen Giap and Hoang Sa coastal routes to explore the beauty of this vibrant city at night, making him feel more energized to prepare for his next trips.

“After living far away from home for many years, I now return to the city to see significant changes in terms of local amenities and its daily development. To me, there is nothing more wonderful than walking on streets with gentle and peaceful light colours. The streets that I used to pass through have seen many changes over recent years as more lights have been installed in the city, showing a sign of a good thing for the city's urban lighting system," Mr. Quyen said excitedly.

Not only Mr. Quyen, 55 year-old Nguyen Binh who lives on Duc Loi 1 Street, Thuan Phuoc Ward, Hai Chau District, said that his family has moved to live in Da Nang from Ha Tinh Province for more than 40 years because of their love and affection for the city. He recalled that looking at the brightly lit streets today, he remembered flickering oil lamps on these streets more than 20 years ago. The city is so beautiful that I couldn't go far away from it. He has gone to the US to live with his daughter for more than 3 months but he wanted to return to Da Nang.

“My house is located next to Nhu Nguyet Street, so I and my wife often go for a walk every night. It's our joy every day. In the past, this street was a bit dark and deserted, but now it becomes brighter thanks to the modern streetlight system and auxiliary buildings along the Han River. I always feel lucky to be able to see the city at night through real eyes, not through any photos or movies," Mr. Binh happily expressed.

Safe and economical use of public lighting system

In its efforts to contribute to making it more attractive to visitors from near and far who want to explore the beauty of local lighting system, Da Nang has also worked with many associations and organizations to create beautiful spaces with the help of light on both banks of the Han River.

With the permission of the Da Nang government, the Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Da Nang (JCCID) worked with relevant agencies to create a lighting space with 500,000 LED lights at a park near the western end of the Rong (Dragon) Bridge from July 12 to 23 as part of celebrations for the 50^th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Viet Nam and Japan (1973-2023). Accordingly, the space had a large-scale lighting system with 3 themes, namely Sakura Dom, Sakura garden and lotus pond. In particular, the Sakura garden is arranged in a Japanese theme and the lotus pond was inspired by the lotus lake in Viet Nam.

The event attracted thousands of local people and tourists to admire, check-in, and experience a space filled with artistic lights.

Referring to the public lighting system, Mr. Le Van Tuan, the Deputy Director of the Da Nang Department of Construction, shared that currently, the city has a combined total of 102,080 lighting points, including compact, sodium and fluorescent lamps, of which, LED lights account for about 35% of the city’s public lighting system to save energy and money. Thanks to that, the city has seen a significant increase in the number of streets that are lit up at night while it has saved money and energy safely and efficiently, contributing to creating safer streets – whether by preventing traffic accidents or keeping locals and tourists safe while strolling around the city.

According to Mr. Le Van Tuan, the entire public lighting system in Da Nang is monitored, controlled, switched off, and operated automatically to ensure traffic safety, security and social order, as well as beautify local landscape while the city is implementing energy-saving solutions to save money in line with its general policy.in a bid to make sure that the public lighting system operates stably and synchronously. High priority is given to lighting up bridges, tunnels, major streets with high traffic-volumes, inner areas, intersections, and traffic accident-prone points. Meanwhile, decorative lighting for bridges spanning the Han River will operate in line with pre-scenario planning, in which, the Han River Bridge will be lit up with colourful lights according to the theme of each event in order to celebrate public holidays as per request of relevant local agencies.

“Phase 1 of the ‘River of light’ project that aims to transform the iconic Han River into a spectacular river of light reached completion in the first quarter of 2024. Under this ambitious project, a cutting-edge light system will be installed along the river banks, between Song Han and Tran Thi Ly bridges, water surface section, as well as the bridges themselves spanning the river. Dubbed 'the river of light' project, the initiative aims to create a series of amazing check-in sites for visitors to enjoy unforgettable moments during their stay in Da Nang. Regarding solutions to development of public lighting system, the city is focusing on creating zoning plans, especially specialized planning for urban lighting until 2030, with a vision to 2045 in order to providing regulations on lighting up streets, public spaces, building outdoor structures, outdoor advertising, and festival areas. As for street lighting, the city will upgrade its street lights by replacing the existing lighting system with energy-saving lights, connecting them to the public lighting control center," Mr. Tuan said.

Reporting by HUYNH TUONG VY – translating by H.L, T.TUNG