Canadian Smart Streetlights Program a Success
The results are in: Canada loves LED streetlights!
According to a press release from Streetlight Intelligence, Inc., 14 field trials for LED streetlights in various areas in Canada have received very favorable reviews from city officials and residents.
The field trial areas are a part of the National Demonstration Program for Adaptive Street Lighting, an attempt to convert Canada’s over 6.5 million streetlights to more energy efficient LED bulbs.
“Turnkey demonstration kits have been assembled and shipped to 28 municipalities across Canada to date,” Streetlight Intelligence CEO Vince Krynski said. “Each municipality has committed to a 2-3 month field trial to familiarize themselves with our Lumen IQ™ technology and experiment with its energy saving, performance monitoring and reporting capabilities.”
LED lights have been proven to be more energy efficient and cost-effective than their incandescent counterparts. LED bulbs use less energy, require less maintenance, and produce fewer greenhouse gases. Incandescent bulbs, on the other hand, have a much shorter lifespan and emit only 5% of the energy they require as light. The other 95% of required energy is emitted as heat.
Kelly Hewson, Technical Advisor for FortisBC, Inc., agreed that the LED streetlight trials were a success.
“A key finding of the field study was that dimming was virtually undetectable by both FortisBC and city staff while 30% energy savings were being achieved,” Hewson said. “Additionally, no negative public reaction resulted from the test site. In our opinion, the products can be recommended for full deployment.”
Energy-Efficient LED Flood Bulb
Many other countries are making the move to energy efficient LED bulbs, too. Mexico City has begun a massive LED streetlight project on their new superhighway, and many municipalities in the United States have also adopted LED technology.
The National Demonstration Program has been extended until December 31, 2010, with other Canadian municipalities expected to get on board.
