In a project representing an investment of £12.2 million, Wiltshire Council is converting its street lighting over to energy efficient LED bulbs.
Explaining the reasoning behind the initiative, local councillors commented that the price of energy was becoming restrictive, and the components for the older lighting system that is presently in use in many parts of the county are no longer being produced.
Local authorities and commercial enterprises in UK locations like Wiltshire and Chester can use electrical services to carry out complete energy audits of their premises. Certified contractors can then show businesses how they can make significant savings of up to 80 percent by adopting systems like LED lighting, which offer greater energy efficiency levels.
Energy costs have spiked in recent years, a trend that seems set to continue in the future. There are currently close to 45,000 individual streetlights throughout the county’s highway network. At present, the cost of annual streetlighting accounts for around £1.9 million of the council’s budget, and it is fast becoming an unaffordable situation.
Wiltshire Council has stated that the new LED lights offer superior energy efficiency and have helped it to meet its aims of being carbon free by the year 2030.
While the two-year project began back in 2019 with LED lighting installed in Chippenham, most of the streetlights in Salisbury, Melksham, Devizes and Amesbury have now been upgraded. The final areas around the county will now be updated this year, as the council scheme reaches its completion date of 2021.
