WASHINGTON — Windmills were around for centuries before anyone thought they might generate electricity. The rumble strip, on the other hand, came into being just 57 years ago. So forgive the guys who think they can be used to turn on lights, because they’re still working on the details.
Here’s the plan: Rows of spring-loaded panels about the size of a cigarette carton replace traditional rumble strips at toll plazas or parking lots. When cars roll across them, a lever pushes down to spin a shaft that turns a flywheel connected to a generator. Bingo: The lights go on.
Before you dismiss that notion, be advised that a nightclub in Holland generates part of its electrical supply from people dancing.
“If you can reduce an energy bill by 5 percent, that’s a good thing for any business,” said Gerard Lynch of New Energy Technologies of Burtonsville, Md. “A year or two from now, we hope to have something to install.”
