StreetLightNews

In the German village of Doerentrup, a local engineer has come up with an idea for on-demand street lighting. As a result of rising energy prices, the local authorities have agreed to turn off the street lights at 9 pm to save on electricity and CO2 emissions. But that does not mean that the residents of Doerentrup are left to walk the streets unsafely in complete darkness.

Now, it is possible to turn on the street lights in specific areas at any time. The residents simply have to register on-line, then dial a central number, punch in the specific code for the street(s) they are about to walk, and the lights turn on instantly. As a resident, you only pay for the phone call, and the authorities pay for the electricity.

As Discovery News also reports, this solution is of course easier to implement in small villages. In Doerentrup, the authorities report that the idea has generated savings of about 25 %. For a video presentation, click here.

As a result of rising energy prices during 2008, several cities and villages throughout Wales have been turning off the street lights to save money. However, the Powy council agreed to turn the street lights back on because a citizen of Llangynog offered to pay for the lights from December to April. Expensive? No, not really. The price is £ 295 for all four months.

That means that the village of Llangynog, which lies at the foot of the Berwyn Mountain Range in Powys, Wales, is being lit up for 15 p per day. The BBC article does not report how many street lights there are in Llangynog, but the small farming community of about 250 people indicates that the number of street light poles is probably limited. Read more here.

At StreetLightNews we simply conclude that this is yet another alternative in terms of operating street lights as energy prices continue to rise.