A Scottish council is facing having to switch off its streetlights as the cost of electricity rises by 46%.

Western Isles Council has seen a ‘substantial increase in energy costs for street lighting’, according to a transportation committee report, with recent price hikes caused by the ending of an agreement with the energy companies for a reduced rate.

The kWh rate up until June of this year was 7.95p. The new rate will be 11.54p – an increase of 46%. The council said the street lighting budget has overspent by £75,000 over the last two years and this has resulted in reductions in other areas of road maintenance, such as road surfacing.

Many of the current street fittings are old and are showing signs of erosion. As a result the lights are requiring additional maintenance.

The transportation committee report states: ‘With the increasing costs of maintenance/energy on an ageing network and without additional funding, it will be necessary to make some difficult decisions over the next few years possibly resulting in lights being switched off for safety reasons.’