LED Street Lights

Buying More Energy Efficient Street Lights – What You Need To Know

LED street lights are cropping up all over the country in citywide pilot projects that put this clean, green energy to use.  But it’s more than the push for more environmentally conscious energy and eco-friendly lighting.  The switch to LED lights across the city offers a wide variety of benefits for the public as well as for citywide finances.  For example, did you know that switching out the typical high pressure sodium lamps used throughout most cities and replacing them with LED light bulbs results in a 50-70% energy savings?  What’s more, the average life span of an LED light bulb can be up to five times more than the high pressure sodium lamp.

LED street lights have different wattages, which may at first seem much too dim to be able to be of any practical use.  However, LED bulbs at lower wattages can not only increase energy savings, but also decrease power consumption considerably – leading to a 25-40% return on investment in areas where they are used.  A typical 80 watt high pressure sodium lamp can be replaced with a 30 watt LED bulb.  Just imagine the savings in terms of both power use, energy and money needed for maintenance, and you’ll see how LED bulbs can easily pay for themselves after just one month.

In addition to their proven efficiency and cost effectiveness, LED light bulbs also require less maintenance and attention than the typical street light.  With up to 50,000 hours of burn time, your city can save a considerable amount of money through lights that last longer, burn cleaner and shine brightly.  LED street lights can also be customized for your particular application or project, giving you a larger range of choices in a variety of colors, sizes and wattages than what regular street lamps can provide.

Perhaps most importantly is the added public safety that comes about as a result of using LED lights.  Certain automobiles have already made the switch to LED lights to help enable drivers to see the road ahead more clearly and fully.  Now, consider the benefits of switching to LED bulbs in street lights.  People will  benefit from the clarity of noon day light even at midnight, leading to the possibility of a decrease in violent crime and assaults.  LED street lights also produce far less heat and use up far less energy to produce the same equivalent of bright, clean light.  Even when compared to fluorescent bulbs, LED lights offer up to a 53% energy savings day after day, year after year.

With new advances in technology, today’s LED street lights can even be programmed on a dimmable timer, so that they take full advantage of the daylight hours while providing extra clarity in the early morning, evening and nighttime hours.  With so many cities facing decreased funding and shrinking budgets, it makes sense to make the switch to cleaner, greener and more efficient LED street lights for enhanced public safety and eco awareness.