Seattle City Councilmember Bruce Harrell

Press Release issued on Thursday, 6/17/2010:

Next stage of pilot project introduces LEDs to arterials to improve visibility and public safety

Seattle – Councilmember Bruce Harrell today announced the expansion of the current LED streetlight pilot project to include LEDs on arterials in a four block area of Belltown and a five block area of the Central District. Installation is scheduled for August.

In Belltown, LEDs will be installed on 2nd Avenue between Wall and Lenora streets and in the Central District, on Cherry Street between 23rd Avenue E and Martin Luther King Jr. Way S. Both areas have had their share of nighttime troubles.

“These are the first arterials in our city to be tested for LEDs,” said Councilmember Bruce Harrell, Chair of the Energy, Technology and Civil Rights Committee. “Effective streetlighting is essential to fostering safe neighborhoods and a safe nightlife environment.”

Below are pictures of the LEDs installed on Capitol Hill. Led Streetlights (top) & Old High-pressure Sodium Streetlights (bottom)

Improvement of the streetlight system has been a priority for Councilmember Harrell because of its impact on customer service, public safety and neighborhoods. In 2004, more than 23,000 streetlight outages were reported and sometimes it took months for a light to be repaired. Now the backlog has been reduced to roughly 1,000 outages with nearly 90 percent being repaired within 14 days or less. Currently, City Light is in the third phase of a four phase effort to re-lamp all 84,000 streetlights in the city. The improved service and LED transformation is unprecedented in Seattle.

In June of 2009, it was announced that the city will use $1 million in stimulus money to begin initial funding of LEDs. Later this year City Light will begin using LED streetlights in its overall replacement program, installing 5,000 LEDs in 2010 and 40,000 over the next five years. LED pilot projects in Capitol Hill, West Seattle and South Park have already received an 85 percent approval from residents. City Light reviewed more than 100 models of LED fixtures and tested nine to find the lighting most favorable to residents.

LED streetlights last up to 12 years, while the high pressure sodium streetlights currently used, last only four years. This will result in less frequent outages and consistently lit streets. The light temperature produced by LEDs does not distort colors and appears brighter to the eye. Given this fact, the intensity of the LEDs can be reduced and less power can be used.

“In terms of customer service, LED streetlights give us a consistent, energy efficient solution that will save the city money,” said Councilmember Harrell. “These two areas will provide the needed testing for arterials and address public safety concerns at the same time.”

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