People who walk, drive or live along Red Deer’s Addington Drive will be asked to test drive some new street lights to be installed later this month.
Red Deer City Council heard an update on Monday of a pilot project the Electric, Light and Power department has set up to test different types of LED and high-efficiency metal halide lights.
Along with looking for energy savings from the use of newer technology, EL&P staff want to gauge public response to the five different types of lights being tested, Senior Electrical Engineer Garfield Lee told council in presenting his report.
Ideally, the test would have been performed in winter when it’s darkest and coldest, said Lee.
However, department staff had some difficulty negotiating arrangements with the various manufacturers whose lights it will try.
Deals have now been struck to have the manufacturers provide the lights at no charge to the city.
The pilot project will still cost an estimated $11,000 including wiring, labour, signs and a public survey.
The plan is to install 20 lights in groups of four along the street at the end of this month, The lights will then be test during April through June.
EL&P staff are now drafting a survey asking residents for their reaction to the various types of lights to be tested. Signs will be installed at the site of the test asking people to contact the city with their thoughts about the new lights.
The pilot project has been set up to serve a number of purposes, said Lee:
l Observe how well the LED lights meet manufacturers’ claims,
l Compare energy consumption with that of conventional lights,
l Increase public awareness of new lighting technology,
l Observe installation and operational issues, and
l Determine if any further tests are needed.
Along with energy consumption, one of the key factors the city considers in selecting new lights is how well they prevent light from being directed toward the sky, said Lee.
Red Deer now uses more than 11,000 street lights, supported by the city’s tax base.
The lights burn up about $1.2 million in electricity and cost an additional $313,000 in mainenance and repair each year, said Lee.
bkossowan@www.reddeeradvocate.com