Switching streetlights off late at night, or not...

[Mac]

I think the reply Fay got was

The lights on but no ones home.

Mac.

[PhilB]

I wonder how the power companies will replace their lost revenue 

Street lighting is unmetered. The power companies take a best guess at what is being used and the nature of the animal is such that this guess is normally short of the mark. I don't think that anyone really knows exactly what the figure is but any shortfall ends up in the distribution company's resistive losses for which everybody pays. Turning off lights may have the effect of both reducing revenue and resistive loss and, taken together, these cancel one another out. In any event, aren't we being told that there isn't enough power to go round any way?

[Whitters]

Our local paper has been running "horror stories" of what will happen when the lights are turned off. They ran similar stories for the first two towns to announce the lights will be turned off at midnight, which of course will turn all the local youth into gun tot'n homicidal maniacs. Or they may go home to bed 'cos they can't see stuff. Well after the second story they ran a text poll 'should the lights be turned off' the result was unanimous 100% YES. Well done the folk of East Sussex    it didn't say how many folk had voted, I did. The following week there was the story Uckfield was to join the ranks of the towns to turn off lights, there was barely a couple of column inches, compared to then previous front page indignant leaders. The lesson place your vote, 100% of 1 voter is enough to quell decenters.  

[MarkS]

Sounds like really good news for you, Paul.  It'll be very interesting to see the difference - before and after.  Down in Riberac, all the recently installed lighting switches off at 11:30pm and the difference is quite noticeable.  The older lighting remains on constantly.

I just need Maidstone, Ashford and Tenterden to do the same!

Mark

[JohnP]

OK - I contacted Bromley council anyway to see what their policy is: This is the response I got... seems like it's not going to happen here for a while


Thank you for your email.

The decision to turn off street lighting would be made by the elected Members as it would require a change to the current Council policy, although I am aware that it is among a number of cost saving measures on which they have sought information.

At the moment, the majority of new lanterns installed in Bromley's residential areas are equipped with electronic control gear which reduces the lamp output from midnight to 6:00am by 25%. The lanterns are fitted with flat glass which is designed to reduce light spill compared with the deep bowl type reflector found on the older style lanterns which is one of the major contributors to sky glow.

The majority, but not all, of the Authorities deciding to go "part-night" lighting confine the schemes to the more rural areas where the existing lighting is relatively poor.

On a purely personal note I think that the move to switch off lighting could leave the Council open to claims if could it be shown that removing lighting contributed to or caused an accident / incident.

Under the Highways Act there is no obligation for a Highway Authority to provide lighting but it is obliged to maintain any that it has installed, again I'm not sure where that would sit regarding switching off.

The attached link should give access to the Bromley website giving details of your local Councillors should you wish to contact them direct.

[Rocket Pooch]

Our nearest stree light is just over 2 miles away, I'll call the council to see if its going to get turned off.  Brighton is now GREEN so they must be turning the lights off there, although there is a fair argument to say they did that in the mid 50's.  As for Gatwick a quick bought of ash seems to cure that as well 

[PhilB]

Dartford used to have a "turn of two out of every three street lamps after midnight" policy. Thanks to the efforts of a certain councillor this policy was squashed many years ago. There appears to be no move to reinstate it. My biggest problem isn't in Kent anyway but north of the river in Essex. It's called Tilbury Docks.

[Carole]

Thousands of streetlights across the county are set to be switched off as part of a drive by Kent County Council to cut spiralling energy costs.

Within a month, work will get under way to pull the plug on 3,000 streetlights - and if there are no complaints after a year-long trial, they will be removed altogether.

But a more far-reaching proposal now out for consultation could see another 70,000 of Kent's 120,000 lights switched off for long periods during the night as part of an initiative county transport chiefs will save the taxpayer £1m a year.

http://www.kentonline.co.uk/kentonline/news/Thousands-of-streetlights-to-be-1866/

[The Thing]

Yippee, shame I don't live in Kent. Even though my address is 'Kent' I don't think this will cover Beckenham somehow!

[mickw]

What are "Streetlights"?   

[Rick]

It'll be interesting to see how this plays out. I heard a discussion on the radio yesterday in which the public safety side against the switch-off was being quite strongly presented...

[Mac]

It'll be interesting to see how this plays out. I heard a discussion on the radio yesterday in which the public safety side against the switch-off was being quite strongly presented...

[RANT]
Yes but its always presented by people who are stupid.
I think you need to ask them when was the last time they were out walking the streets at 1 and 2 am?
and did anything happen to them?

How many people are going to be out walking the streets at 1 and 2 am in rural kent?
probably very few, most people drive every where now.

and will it make any difference. If you are going to get mugged at that time of the morning, do you think street lights will change anything?

Do what us rural people do when we are out at night, and take a bloody torch.

I think these people who ram Health and safety down your throats every working min of the day, should be shot.
Most of them are not in the real F@~#&^" world.

[/RANT]
Mac.

[Rick]

Yeah. You can show them that turning lights off actually reduces crime and they'll still want brighter lights on...

[Ivor]

Great if it happens but it seems a bit shortsighted surely you fit the lights with PIRs rather than timers. These would turn on the light ahead so there is always at least two lights on either side of the person. I can't imagine it would be anymore expensive. This will keep everyone happy.

[mickw]

Great if it happens but it seems a bit shortsighted surely you fit the lights with PIRs rather than timers. These would turn on the light ahead so there is always at least two lights on either side of the person. I can't imagine it would be anymore expensive. This will keep everyone happy.

I'm sure the cats, dogs and foxes will feel a lot more secure but lights switching on and off, apparently at random, could be more annoying for residents