Cities turn off streetlights to save money

 

By Dennis Cauchon, USA TODAY

 

The old-fashioned streetlight is the recession's latest victim. To save money, some cities and towns are turning off lights, often lots of them.

 

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2009-08-26-cities-turn-off-streetlights_N.htm

I like the timer solution.  The recession has touch every aspect of our daily lives, this is just another example.

Most of our streets, parking lots and gas stations etc..are overlit.  The fixtures should be changed to lower wattage with more directed beam.  Most existing streetlights have so much glare that it defeats the purpose.

 

It is supposed to be dark at night anyway.  When the streetlight by my house is out it is so much nicer.

I guess I tend to think the brighter the streets, the safer the streets.

Im surprised many are not on solar power.  Same could be done with parking meters.

^Agree, Push Solar Now!!!

This is a bad idea for inner-city/Downtowns imo.

I think so as well. I would not mind more targeted and more efficient lighting fixtures, such as what Dayton and Georgetown, Ohio are using, but the days of the old glass bulb should be long past.

 

Overkill:

 

Outdated style that is still in use, but directs light to the side and up.

 

Recessed lighting offers directed light, and if outfitted with LED lights, can offer a substantial savings.

 

LED lighting:

 

BTW, I believe this is the company where Cincinnati gets many of their decorative street lights from --

http://www.nilandco.com/products/

 

  If Cincinnati wants to save money, they should turn off the gaslights.  :x

 

  As with so many other city issues, there wouldn't be as many glaring streetlights if there wasn't so much sprawl.

 

  A well designed street needs very few if any streetlights. Light from adjacent buildings should be sufficient to light the street.

 

  If Cincinnati wants to save money, they should turn off the gaslights.  :x

 

  As with so many other city issues, there wouldn't be as many glaring streetlights if there wasn't so much sprawl.

 

  A well designed street needs very few if any streetlights. Light from adjacent buildings should be sufficient to light the street.

 

But that is a waste of energy as well. Think about it, why would lights (or the majority of lights - since some offices operate around the clock) be on in an office bulding or street level establishment after hours, late night or overnight?

 

  They wouldn't be on overnight. That's the point.

 

 

Converting 1,500 streetlights to LED will save $100,000/year on average in electrical costs.  That's continuously leaving the lights on.  Also LED's don't generate as much (if none at all) light pollution.  They are also more practical to power by solar sources if a municipality decides to implement that technology.

 

Most inner cities shouldn't jump on the plan to shut off lights since copper theft is a major problem.  It just makes it easier to rip out the wires.  Plus you can expect a spike in crime.

The LED lighting is nice. Unfortunately, our streetlights are out, not because someone is wanting to go out of their way to save energy......But for two reasons.. 1. People fail to report them...2. neglectful maintenance. Maybe more efficient and longer lasting ones can be installed. I don't know how many times I have called CPP.

 

  They wouldn't be on overnight. That's the point.

 

 

 

Thats not what you wrote, which is why I question.  The way you wrote that, I took it that you meant the lights would be on in buildings at all hours.  therefore lighting the streets.

 

If there are no lights on, where will street lighting come from for those out after hours?

I agree with Sherman. I realize LEDs cost more than incandescant bulbs, but the data I've seen shows that cities can recoup their cost in less than a year. And if streetlights with LEDs are powered by batteries recharged by solar power, I'll bet cities can cover the cost of the PV panels and the batteries in no time, too!

Do any of the cities own their own streetlights? didn't Cincinnati recently sell them to Duke? and isn't that rather normal?

Since, the City sold theirs to Duke (or did they?), what if they installed their own LED lights?  Would Duke have to lead that way on that, or would their purchase of the streetlights make it later rather than sooner that Duke would make the switch?

It would be great if Cincinnati turned off some of their streetlights.

 

Many of you obviously don't live on an "overlit" street. I do. They have at least twice the number of necessary streetlights. The city could literally remove half the streetlights and the street would still be perfectly illuminated without any inappropriate darkness or concerns about crime.

 

In fact, one of the several lights on my block has been burnt out for several months now. Clearly, no one has reported this to the city yet because 1) no one wants it turned back on, or 2) no one has even f*ing noticed because the street is already so damn bright.

 

We jokingly refer to the one outside of our house as "the eye of Sauron"

Just as long as Cincinnati NEVER gets rid of their streetcar lamps.

we've got gas lamps on our block and they really don't light up the neighborhood at all.  Most of the neighbors just leave on their porch lights all night instead.

Clifton installed new streetlamps in the past year along Ludlow.  They're nice but they're insanely bright.  However, I see their advantage over the old ones.  I'd say keep downtown and business districts well lit.  Be more spare in residential areas--leave it up to private owners to install lighting as necessary, subject to updated lumen regulations in the ordinance.

Of course, cities could save millions more by not adding lanes and widening streets. Sure, safety could be a serious concern by turning off lights in some areas, but these are cars we're talking about.

I'll say this...

 

I'm a huge urbanite, I love the city, am not afraid of the city ... I've walked from the West End to Liberty Hill at 4 a.m. one time through OTR and from Lytle Tower to Liberty Hill through Pendleton in the middle of the night around the same time ...

 

I say that to say this, one thing that makes me feel more comfortable is a well-lit street.

^ ooh you got away with that, but lights or no its not a good idea. heed the wisdom of babylon 5 (and ingmar bergman)!

 

"Have you ever heard of the hour of the wolf? My father told me about it. It's the time between 3:00 and 4:00 in the morning. You can't sleep, and all you can see is the troubles and the problems and the ways that your life should've gone but didn't. All you can hear is the sound of your own heart. I've been living in the hour of the wolf for seven days, Lyta. Seven days. The wolf and I are now on a first-name basis. In times like this, my father used to take one large glass of vodka before bed. To keep the wolf away, he said. And then he would take three very small drinks of vodka, just in case she had cubs while she was waiting outside. It doesn't work."

 

-- Susan Ivanova

 

Atlanta has been doing this around the airport for awhile now. The roads for a mile around the airport are filled with traffic during the day, but are dead at night expcept for cargo and maintenance vehicles. I think at like 10PM everything gets turned off.