A lighting impact assessment for signage shows council, and where needed the Department of Transport and Planning (DTP), that a digital or illuminated sign will be safe for drivers and won’t disturb people nearby. If you’re applying for a permit for an LED screen, billboard, pylon or sky sign in Victoria, this is usually the report you’ll be asked for.

In short:

Most digital and illuminated signs need a planning permit with lighting conditions.
A Lighting Impact Assessment Report is submitted before the permit is approved.
Many permits also need a Lighting Compliance Report, approved before the sign is switched on.
Both reports need a suitably qualified lighting consultant.

What is a lighting impact assessment for signage?

It’s a report on how bright the sign will be, day and night, and how it will look from the road and from nearby homes. It compares the sign with the brightness limits for that location and sets out what’s needed to stay within them, such as night-time dimming and operating hours.

For the limits themselves, see Digital Signage Brightness Limits in Victoria.

What does the report cover?

In broad terms, a lighting impact assessment for signage looks at:

Where the sign is, and who will see it: drivers, pedestrians and nearby homes
How bright the area already is at night
How bright the sign will be in daylight, at dusk and at night
The dimming, curfew and operating hours needed to stay within the limits

The aim is a clear answer for council: the sign can be approved, and under which lighting conditions.

Measuring sign luminance from the roadside at night

When do you need one?

You’ll usually need a lighting impact assessment when:

The sign is digital, LED or internally lit
It’s within 60 metres of a freeway or arterial road, so the application is referred to the Head, Transport for Victoria
It faces homes, or sits near an airport or flight path where CASA applies
Council asks for one in a request for further information

If you’re not sure, start with council’s request or your permit application. There’s more on permits in Lighting Permit Requirements in Victoria.

What does DTP require?

For signs referred to the Head, Transport for Victoria, the DTP Requirements and Guidelines for Illuminated Outdoor Advertising Signage set out two steps:

Lighting Impact Assessment Report: submitted for approval, prepared and certified by a suitably qualified lighting consultant.
Lighting Compliance Report: submitted and approved before the sign operates, based on luminance measurements of the installed sign.

Skip the second step and the sign can’t be switched on, even once it’s installed.

How is it different from a compliance report?

The lighting impact assessment for signage is done before approval, on the proposed sign. The compliance report is done after installation, on the real sign, to confirm it matches what was approved. Many permits need both, so it pays to plan for the second report from the start. Keep both with the permit file, as council or DTP may ask for them if there’s a complaint later.

How long does a lighting impact assessment for signage take?

Spaces At Night delivers lighting impact assessment reports for submission within 3–5 days. Testing and the compliance report are arranged as soon as the sign is installed, so approval isn’t held up waiting on the lighting.

Who can prepare it?

DTP asks for a suitably qualified lighting consultant. Spaces At Night’s specialist lighting consultants (MIES) have more than 15 years in lighting design and compliance, and prepare signage reports for councils, DTP and CASA across Melbourne, regional Victoria and interstate projects.