What are the NEC Requirements for Voltage Drop in
Traffic Signal and Roadway Lighting Applications?
Voltage drop is an important consideration in
Traffic Signal and Roadway Lighting design.
Failure to account for voltage drop can result in
heating and inefficiency in operation, as well as
problems in electronic equipment.
There is no requirement in the NEC for a
maximum voltage drop for Traffic Signal and
Roadway Lighting applications. In fact only two
By Tom Baker, articles in the NEC (647 Sensitive Electronic
Puget Sound Equipment and 695 Fire Pumps) contain voltage
Electrical drop requirements.
What Voltage is used for Design
C Calculations?
The NEC specifies in Article 220-Load
Calculations the voltage to be used for design
calculations:
O 220.2 Computations.
(A) Voltages. Unless other voltages are specified, for
purposes of computing branch-circuit and feeder loads,
nominal system voltages of 120, 120/240, 208Y/120,
D 240, 347, 480Y/277, 480, 600Y/347, and 600 volts shall
be used.
However, most electrical equipment has a
E utilization voltage that is less than the design
voltage [220.2], to allow for voltage drop. Typical
utilization voltages are 115, 200, 230 and 460 VAC.
A Fine Print Note Gives the
Recommendation for Voltage Drop
While there is not a voltage drop requirement for
C most applications, a Fine Print Note (FPN’s are
not enforceable) gives a recommendation for
sizing conductors:
210.19 Conductors — Minimum Ampacity and Size.
O (A) Branch Circuits Not More Than 600 Volts.
(1) General.
FPN No. 4: Conductors for branch circuits as defined
in Article 100, sized to prevent a voltage drop exceeding
R 3 percent at the farthest outlet of power, heating, and
lighting loads, or combinations of such loads, and where
the maximum total voltage drop on both feeders and
branch circuits to the farthest outlet does not exceed 5
N
percent, provide reasonable efficiency of operation. See
215.2 for voltage drop on feeder conductors.
E
Another FPN to Section 215.2, has the same
recommendation of sizing to not exceed 3% for
feeders and 5% for the farthest outlet on a branch
circuit.
R What is the cost of excessive voltage
drop?
Even though electrical equipment can operate at
5 to 10% lower than its nominal voltage, any
voltage drop costs the owner, as any voltage drop
Page 26
creates wasted power. According to the Copper
Development Association “Installing wire only
one size larger than has been required by the
National Electrical Code increases energy
efficiency with dramatic paybacks. This simple
technique can yield quick paybacks while
increasing the flexibility of the installation. By
increasing the wire size, reduced power losses
offset the cost of the wire and produce savings on
energy costs.”1
An example shows the difference for single phase,
15 ampere lighting load operating continuously,
at a distance of 100 feet from the panel. With 12
AWG, the wire and conduit cost $53.82, and the
cost of the next size larger wire is $6.75 more, but
this yields a $17.78 savings per year at $0.07/kWh,
with a payback of 5 months. The energy loss in
the 12 AWG wire is 77 W, but the 10 AWG has a
lower loss of 48 W.
The designer needs to calculate the load, using the
appropriate voltage and distance to the load.
Different wire sizes should be used for calculations
to determine the most cost effective wire size.
How to Determine Voltage Drop
Chapter 9, Table 9 in the NEC lists the AC
conductor resistance properties.
AC Impedance = Table 9 Ohms x number of feet
Divide the answer by 1,000 to determine value per
foot, as table 9 list resistance per 1,000 ft.
Voltage drop is in proportion to the resistance of
the conductor and the current, according to Ohms
Law, E = I x R. As the current and/or resistance
increase, the voltage, or in this case voltage drop
increases.
Example:
What is the voltage drop of two 10 AWG THHN
conductors that supply a 15A, 120V load 200 feet
from the service?
VD= I x R
I= 15A
R= 1.2 ohms per 1,000 ft 1.2/1,000 x 400 ft = .48
ohms (400 feet is total run)
VD = 15A x .48 ohms = 7.2 volts
Suggested maximum for this application is 5% or
6 volts. The conductor size is too small for the
distance and load.
Testing Voltage Drop
There are circuit testers available that test and
determine the voltage drop electronically. The
Continued on page 27
IMSA Journal

Code Corner . . .
From page 26
tester shown in the illustration
measures voltage drop under a 12, 15,
and 20 ampere load for a 120 VAC
circuit, and shows line voltage and
ground impedance. While designed to
be used with receptacle circuits, a test
lead set with alligator clips allows use
on non-receptacle circuits. An existing
roadway lighting circuit could be tested
at the farthest point, with the
luminaires disconnected, to determine
the actual voltage drop. Also, any poor
connections would have high
resistance and the meter results would
show excessive voltage drop across the
bad connection.
electronic is a good choice.
• While the nominal voltage from
the utility may be 120V, during
periods of peak demand, the
utility voltage may dip. A
conservative design would
allow for voltage dip from the
utility, resulting in larger
conductors to the load.
Next Issue
Beginning with the next issue, there
will be a series of articles that look
at the concepts and rules in NEC
Article 250-Grounding:
• Why a ground rod does not
protect a luminare, on a metal
lighting pole, from lightning
damage.
• The correct way to bond
telecommunication protectors
at traffic signal cabinets.
• Why a ground rod does not
reduce step potential at an
energized metal pole.
• Why copper clad ground rods
are used.
• Why a neutral is required for
three phase services with no
line to neutral loads.
• Why ground rods do not
protect building wiring from
lightning damage.
• Understanding Bonding vs. Ground-
ing.
• The differences between prescriptive
and performance grounding.
Footnotes
1
Copper Development Association, One
Wire Size Up Means Big Savings,
www.copper.org
Italic text excerpted from the 2002 NEC,
National Electric Code® and the NEC®
are registered trademarks of the National
Fire Protection Association, Inc., Quincy
Massachusetts.
IMSA Member Tom Baker is a Master
Electrician, and is certified as an IMSA
Level II Traffic Signal and Roadway
Lighting Level I. His business, Puget
Sound Electrical Training, provides
classes on the NEC, Grounding and
Bonding, and other electrical subjects.
He is the IMSA representative to the
Illumination Engineering Society.
Contact him via email at:
tom@psetraining.com
I M S A

Circuit Analyzer (Illustration courtesy

Ideal Industries, Inc.)

Other Considerations
Other considerations for voltage drop
are:
• A higher ambient temperature
requires derating of the
conductor. The formula to derate
conductor ampacity due to
temperature is shown in NEC
Chapter 9, Table 8.
• With more than three current
carrying conductors it is required
that the conductors to be derated,
for example 4 current carrying
conductors have to be derated
80%. 310.15(B)(2)] due to
bundling.
• Remember to calculate the lighting
load based on VA rating of the
ballast, not the lamp wattage
[220.4(B)].
• A higher voltage results in less
voltage drop, use 240 VAC for
roadway lighting instead of 120
VAC.
• Some HID ballasts types are more
sensitive to voltage drops or dips.
A magnetic regulator ballast or an
March/April 2004 Page 27