Street Light Replacement

On 4 January The Farnborough Society was represented at a meeting at Rushmoor Borough Council where we were updated on the Street Lighting Replacement Scheme.  This is a Private Finance Initiative which Hampshire County Council is running in partnership with Scottish & Southern Electric Contracting.

Across the county many of the street lights are in poor condition, as are some of the lamp standards.  There are also an excessive number of illuminated street signs, many of which are not really effective.  This scheme will replace columns where necessary, and remove some redundant signs.

The new lamps will give a ‘white’ light as opposed to an orange light and will be more accurately directed to the roads and pavements.  This will reduce energy consumption and light pollution to the night sky and should give more security.  Orange lighting makes it more difficult to see colours at night, making identification difficult when reporting criminal acts.  Most stock over 15 years old will be replaced on a like-for-like basis with white fluorescent lights in residential areas.

We are given to understand that during the installation phase they will be using a new CMS system. This will enable them to manage the energy used by controlling light levels and switching times.  This also enables them to electrically detect faults which will result in a reduction in night scouting, more accurate fault reporting and most importantly improved service levels

The work in Rushmoor is due to commence in April and some Farnborough roads will be included in the initial phase.  Residents will be advised when their particular roads will be affected. 

More detailed information can be found on their website at www.lightsoninhampshire.co.uk.