Street lighting upgrade already dimming the city’s carbon footprint
A project to upgrade the city’s street lighting is already having an impact on reducing carbon emissions and saving the council £150,000 a year.
18,000 lanterns in Brighton, Hove and Portslade are having LED lighting upgrades which will eventually reduce CO2 emissions by up to 61%. This will make a significant contribution to the council’s goal to be carbon neutral by 2030.
The new lights emit a white light which allows objects and people to be identified more easily compared with the light from a traditional lamp, will also reduce the city’s energy consumption and require less maintenance.
The street lighting upgrade project:
- has replaced 1000 lighting columns
- is currently replacing around 600 lanterns a month
Carbon emissions falling
In 2018/19, emissions from street lighting electricity use fell by more than 20% compared to 2017/18 with greater reductions expected as the work progresses.
The project, which will eventually save the city council £500,000 a year, does not include any plans to replace the city’s historic cast iron columns. It is due to be completed in 2021.
Chair of the Environment, Transport and Sustainability Committee, Anne Pissaridou said: “The council is committed to its plan to be carbon neutral by 2030 and this project will certainly help to achieve that goal.
“As the day’s get shorter and shorter, many residents in Portslade and Hove will already be seeing the benefits of the new white lights and it’s good to know that with each lantern replaced, the city’s carbon footprint gets a little smaller.
“This project, alongside investments we’re making in our transport infrastructure, including electric vehicle charging points, shows just how hard we’re working to reduce the city’s carbon emissions.”
Residents can also find out more about the project and its progress, including the roads completed so far and roads that are currently being upgraded on the street lighting improvements page.
