Lights out!

[the.fee.fairy]

In my local area, the council have decided in their green-wisery, to turn off the lights at midnight in the interests of saving energy and cutting carbon emissions.

Fair play you might say...

Except - i get off the bus at 00:30 - half an hour after the lights have turned off. Then i have to walk home. And its not just me, there are about 6-8 people who get off the bus at the same time. is there not now an issue of public safety?!

I was thinking of phoning them/emailing them to ask why they're not using solar lights - then they'd only come on when the light levels are low enough.

Are there any drawbacks to this? Would/Could the solar lamps be bright enough to rival the electric ones?

I thought i'd ask people here for views and opinions. Ta

[baldowrie]

dunno but solar power is being used for more and more road signs these days

[Cornelian]

I'd very very concerned as well if the council turned off street lights. I used to work as a nurse on shift work and such a policy would have meant me trying to walk home in the pitch black as well - to be honest, I think it is hard enough for women out late at night without this as well.

I commend their decision to look into ways to save energy - but I do not think this is one of the right ways!

I'm pretty sure that Australia has some solar powered street lamps somewhere, but I am not sure how effective they are. I have solar powered lights in my garden and they have only very limited effectiveness (not very bright and in winter they will not shine all night as they get so little sunshine during the day).

[Jack]

Gidday

I think the lights should be turned off at night. Have you ever heard of a smal light emmitting hand held thingie called a torch? And ladies, it would be safer for you at night too.

Many years ago when I was in the Police we had a power crisis and the lights were put out early and almost all crime stopped. Baddies are all gutless and seem to all be scared of the dark.

[ina]

My father once gave me an old newspaper article from the time when they first proposed to introduce streetlighting in a town in Germany. They predicted rising levels of crime and "indecent behaviour" due to the light... Sounds strange to read that now, but I think it's true. People often wondered why I wasn't afraid of walking in the forrest at night - well, as Jack said, criminals don't like the dark either. I always carry a torch (a wind-up one nowadays, so I can't even run out of battery power!).

But I can understand your not liking the dark - it's something that's difficult to get used to. Is that the last bus of the night that you are on? Maybe the council could adjust the time they turn off the lights so that it stays on as long as there are buses running?

[revdode]

I'm in two minds about this. The energy saving and reduction in light pollution appeals to me but I can see areas where the consequences may not be good. My main fear wouldn't be crime but motorists.

There are less drastic measures, turning off every second street light, or using a light controller which has the ability to dim the light. There operate at full brightness on startup and at the end of the normal night period but shutdown to 50% or 70% in the early hours. The problem is not all lights can be easily retrofitted and if you start having to junk the gear and replace it with new the savings make less sense.

As far as solar lighting goes this is really not viable, street lights vary from between 40W and 400W depending on the lamp type and application. The only units which could realistically be run on solar are newer LED units and these are currently mainly being used for pedestian areas and side streets even these currently run at around 50W. The technology is improving but I don't think it will ever be viable to power all street lighting with solar panels.

Meanwhile we will carry on adding high wattage city beautification luminaires to our town centres and switch old cheap to run sodium street lamps for newer whiter but more costly and less efficient alternatives.

I suppose the other issue is what to do with all that baseload if we turn the street lights off. At the moment I think these soak up power from stations we don't switch off like the old nukes and some of the older coal stations. How much sense does that make

On reflection I'd probably still vote for shutting them down and carry a hand crank LED torch with me. Sadly it won't happen because CCTV is next to useless in the dark.

I R a lighting nerd - it pays the bills.

[biffvernon]

Enjoy the stars.

I wish my local authority would turn the lights off.

[Bonniegirl]

Good idea! Now all they have to do is persuade all those companies and shops who leave a million light on at night to switch them off too!

[the.fee.fairy]

I am carrying a torch. This means however, that every time i go to work (at the airport) i get my bags searched because i've got one of the newtonian ones with the magnetic coil in it!

I like the idea of councils trying to save energy and the environment, but what does it mean for public safety?

I get the last bus to come into the village, and so far the lights have still been on when i've got off the bus, but i'm not looking forward to the day that they're not on. As has been mentioned, its not just crime to be worried about, but motorists too - it is not going to be as clear whether there is a pedestrian crossing the road.

[ina]

If your's is the last bus, then I would really try to persuade the council to leave the lights on for just one more hour... They might see the sense in that.

[hamster]

I think it's laudable that your council wants to save energy, but I really don't think this is the way to do it. I feel unsafe enough already walking about alone after dark, and if there weren't any street lights I probably wouldn't dare. I understand that this move probably affects a very small number of people, but it seems that safety at night is actually quite important!

Also, have they thought about the possible consequence of people taking taxis or driving (maybe after drinking) if they don't feel safe walking? If that happens, the environmental benefit may well be undermined by the extra emissions from the cars and taxis...

[Cornelian]

I would think that using a torch might equate to "I am alone and vulnerable, and here I am!". I am never afraid of the dark in the country, but in cities? Yes. In the past 30 years all the urban areas I have lived in tend to have gangs of young men roaming once the pubs start to toss them out. To not have street lights would be an enormous risk to take, and I think that the council would be leaving themselves open to civil action should anyone be attacked late at night.

[Wombat]

it is not going to be as clear whether there is a pedestrian crossing the road.

I know that this won't solve the other problems Fee, but a high visibility vest with retroreflective tape and you will light up like Kings Cross when headlights hit you.

Nev

[the.fee.fairy]

oooh...how sexy will that look!!

I could cover myself in reflective materials etc, but i think in essence, ins just bad planning by whatever council dept made the decision to turn the lights off. If they'd looked at the bus timetables, they'd have realised that the last bus comes in at 00:30, therefore, if they turn the lights off, people will be home by 00:45, turn them off 01:00-06:00/as required and energy will still be saved, but no-ne will be at risk!

[Shirley]

Have you written to your council to suggest this Fee? It certainly makes sense.