Red, Amber, Green! LED traffic lights save county £60k

Traffic lights in the county of Lincolnshire are giving new meaning to the phrase ‘Red, Amber, Green’. The Lincolnshire Highways Alliance is installing more than 1,400 new low-energy LED light systems […]

Traffic lights in the county of Lincolnshire are giving new meaning to the phrase ‘Red, Amber, Green’. The Lincolnshire Highways Alliance is installing more than 1,400 new low-energy LED light systems in traffic lights and at pedestrian crossings across the county.

Tim Clark, traffic signals manager believes the new bulbs will save the council thousands of pounds on their energy bill.

He said: “The new LED light systems will be up to six times more energy efficient. We estimate that they will reduce carbon emissions by 300 tonnes every year. Hopefully they will last about ten years, which will deliver an energy saving of about £60,000 each year.”

The local authority would like to upgrade all of its lights but at some sites the technology is “not compatible”, said Mr Clark, adding they will install new LED lights as standard at all new sites.

On top of other ‘green’ measures the local authority says savings are piling up.

Steve Golightly, senior sustainability officer said: “The energy saving measures we have invested in to date have reduced the authority’s carbon footprint by over 1,500 tonnes of CO2 each year – that’s about the same weight as 128 double-decker buses – while also delivering an annual saving in excess of £300,000.”

On average he said it takes roughly four years to recover the money they invest through energy savings.

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