Bath & North East Somerset Council's Bright Idea

Following the completion of a 4,000 streetlight replacement project, Bath & North East Somerset Council has become the first local authority in the country to convert all main roads to energy saving LED technology.

The award winning project that cuts energy use by more than 1.5 million Kilowatt Hours is expected to make savings of £200,000 per year and, because LED technology is less costly to maintain, a further £50,000 per year in the future. 

In addition, carbon emissions will be cut by over 780 tonnes, equivalent to 3% of the Council’s total energy consumption.

Councillor Caroline Roberts, Cabinet Member for Transport, said, “Instead of turning-off street lights like many other town halls, Bath & North East Somerset Council has used the latest technology to keep them on and save the local taxpayer tens of thousands of pounds on energy costs, cutting our carbon footprint in the process.

“The numbers involved in this project were truly staggering. We’ve worked hard in partnership with the private sector, particularly Philips, to deliver a success that will benefit local people because the savings allow us to protect frontline services.”

The technology includes intelligent lighting which adjusts the power used by the lanterns according to the amount of the traffic on the road at any time. 

Andy Gowen, Director of Outdoor Lighting Solutions, Philips added, “Highly efficient, long lasting, environmentally friendly and controllable, LEDs have opened up a whole new world of possibilities for lighting.”

The achievement of the project has also been recognised by the Local Government News Street Design Awards 2013 as a Winner in the Public Lighting category. An award ceremony is being held in July 2013.

Similar LED technology is now being considered for residential streets.