The Eye

Volvo’s Brilliant “Life Paint” Makes Bikes Reflective for Nighttime Rides

Life Paint from Volvo is invisible safety spray paint for your bike that glows in the dark.  

Courtesy of Grey London

Swedish car company Volvo is helping nighttime cyclists defend themselves against cars with Life Paint, a spray-on reflective paint developed by Grey London in collaboration with reflective paint makers Albedo100 that uses special adhesives that are invisible in daylight but light up after dark in the glare of automobile headlights.

Life Paint can also be sprayed on fabric. Its glow-in-the-dark powers last a week, and it washes off without damaging the material.

Courtesy of Grey London

“Volvo has always taken safety seriously,” Grey London said in a product statement. “They invented the three-point seat belt in 1959 and then opened up the patent so that any car manufacturer could use it. Now they’re giving away a product to take Volvo safety beyond its cars.”

Courtesy of Grey London

They note that Life Paint can be applied to any fabric,  including clothes, shoes, strollers, backpacks, or dog collars. An application lasts about a week and washes off without damaging the material.

Life Paint is currently being market tested in the U.K., with an international rollout if the idea proves popular.

Courtesy of Grey London

Currently, 2,000 trial cans of the product are being given away at six U.K. bike shops. “Assuming it’s well-received (and so far, so good!), we’re looking to roll it out internationally,” Grey London’s Ollie Dearn told me in an email.