The mammoth task of switching all 28,000 of Bromley’s incandescent streetlights to LED lighting has now been completed.
The project provides more reliable lighting to residents and motorists and maximises energy savings, helping to achieve the council’s 2027 net zero carbon target as well as realising financial savings of £1 million a year at current costs to support other frontline services.
The replacement LED bulbs are low energy, so cheaper to run, easier to maintain, and more energy efficient in energy intake and directional light output, which means that more light is directed towards the pavement rather than up and outwards into the skies.
The programme to convert all of Bromley’s lampposts to LED lighting began in 2013, with the goal to reduce carbon emissions with energy usage, reduce costs of energy used, and create better lit streets for residents. This final changeover means that all 28,000 streetlamps in the borough now use more energy efficient LED lighting, and more than 8,000 of the oldest concrete lamp columns also being replaced. In addition to the replacement of standard street lighting, all 709 of the borough’s heritage street lanterns, heritage ‘gas lamp’ and ornate design lanterns installed in areas such as Chislehurst High Street and St Mary’s Cray High Street, have been retrofitted with replacement lamp units within the existing lanterns to retain their aesthetic appearance.
Councillor Nicholas Bennett, Executive Councillor for Transport, Highways and Road Safety says, “This is a win win for the council tax payer and the environment, virtue has its reward! The completion of the street lighting changeover is good news for the borough and its residents, helping us make a significant saving in energy usage, greatly reducing the light pollution, and leading the way towards a more carbon-neutral future for Bromley.”
The old streetlamps were lit using high (white) and low (yellow) pressure sodium lanterns, which tended to flicker and falter with age, as well as being less efficient in terms of light pollution and heat.
More information on street lighting.
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For media enquiries, please contact Andrew Rogers, Head of Public Affairs Officer, on 020 8461 7670 or email Andrew.Rogers@bromley.gov.uk.