Calderdale Council is looking at the future of street lights in the borough, to improve their condition, reliability and energy efficiency.
At the meeting of the Economy and Investment Panel on Thursday 17 March, members discussed options for improving and investing in the street lighting network.
The Council currently spends £1.3million on Street Lighting energy each year, and their carbon dioxide emissions cost the council £50k annually.
The Panel looked at the existing infrastructure in place and discussed a number of options for the future to improve the network and make energy savings.
They also looked at the recent developments in LED technology, and how these can be utilised to improve of the network.
The proposals included the installation of white LED lights to replace 30,000 existing bulbs across Calderdale during a four year period. This type of new energy efficient LED street lighting could save up to £900,000 a year in energy costs and other savings.
Members also discussed how streetlight technology can be incorporated into future flood resilience, looking at options such as Wi-Fi connections in lighting columns, higher level connections and battery backup in the event of power interruptions.
These discussions will now inform the recommendations to the Council’s Cabinet, who will meet on Monday 11 April.
Calderdale Council’s Chair of the Economy and Investment Panel, Cllr Barry Collins, said:
“It’s essential that we continue to invest in the street lighting network using technology to improve reliability and to reduce energy costs.
“Many of the street lights in Calderdale are old and are not energy efficient. Some are over 50 years old, a lot older than their designed life span.
“By installing new LED lights we could keep the streets well lit and safe for pedestrians, cyclists and drivers and also help with crime prevention as they would improve the quality of CCTV images captured at night.”