Local highway authorities can save money on streetlighting electricity without having to switch off lamps, according to a new guide from the Institution of Lighting Engineers.
The ILE has suggested alternatives after Essex County Council revealed plans to create two pilot areas where streetlighting, except in areas for safety and security, would be turned off between midnight and 5am (Surveyor, 20 July).
The ILE, concerned that other authorities might follow suit, announced a set of guidelines for cost and energy savings in public lighting.
Among its proposals in advice note LB1, is readjusting lighting levels at which photo cell switch streetlighting on; selective dimming of residential lighting or on traffic routes with low flows; or, in some cases, removing streetlights that are no longer necessary.
The proposal to reduce the photo-electric cells at between 50 and 25 lux instead of the current 30/70 alone could save 200 hours burning time a year, the ILE claims. Reducing light levels rather than removing them altogether would ensure that residents still have ‘the freedom to use streets after dark’.
Use of alternatives to lighting such as intelligent road studs is also mentioned, but the ILE cautions that these have ongoing maintenance costs, and do not provide safety and security for pedestrians and cyclists.
Dave Coatham, the ILE’s technical services manager, said: ‘With modern lights, it is now possible to use photo-electric cells between 50 and 25 lux or maybe even lower, and they can be fitted on new projects or as routine maintenance. It is also possible with white light modern lamps to use one class lower, and this could save up to 50% from the average lighting electricity budget.’
The guidance also advocates authorities look at where streetlights have been installed and whether they are still needed as part of good housekeeping.
‘There are many areas where 10m posts have been placed on country roads, which have since been bypassed,’ adds Coatham. ‘As a result, these routes now have far less traffic on them and it would make sense to remove the lights along the route, except when it goes through a village.
‘Similarly, many roads were lighted because they led to hospitals outside of town, and these have been closed down or moved, but the lights are still there.’
The ILE, produced the guidelines in conjunction with the UK Lighting Board and the County Surveyors’ Society.
• Street lighting – Invest to save reduction or removal of street lighting – Interim advice note LB1 : www.surveyormagazine.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=archive.featuredetail&IsPaper=true&articleID=3207