City to Install LED Streetlights in Mayfield Neighborhood
Pilot project could lead to potential upgrades throughout the city.
By Adele Uphaus
MANAGING EDITOR AND CORRESPONDENT
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Beginning next week, the City of Fredericksburg will replace 95 streetlights in the Mayfield neighborhood with LED lights.
“This initiative reflects City Council’s commitment to being a climate-forward city, with a goal to have 100% renewable energy power municipal operations by 2035,” a press release issued by the city last week states. “The new LED lights will save money, help the environment, and make our neighborhoods safer.”
The work in Mayfield is a pilot project that the city hopes to replicate in other neighborhoods in the next two years, “contingent on good performance results (and funding),” according to the press release.
Upgrading the 95 streetlights will cost $13,787.55, city spokeswoman Sonja Cantu said. The work will be completed by Dominion and its contractor, River City Construction.
The existing old streetlights are high-pressure sodium and mercury vapor and have lifespan of between two and five years, according to the press release.
By contrast, the LED streetlights come with a guaranteed lifespan of 10 years and can last up to 20 years. The new lights are expected to reduce the city’s utility bill for lighting the Mayfield neighborhood by 18% annually, according to the press release.
“Along with cost savings, this project will help reduce the city’s environmental impact by reducing approximately 30 metric tons of CO₂ emissions associated with power generated for the old streetlights each year,” the release states.
The city selected Mayfield for the pilot LED streetlight project because it has a traditional city block layout, “which is the ideal setting to evaluate the effectiveness and the impact of this new LED technology,” the press release states.
It also meets the requests of the Mayfield community for better streetlighting for visibility and safety. The light emitted by the LED streetlamps is cooler and whiter than that from older lamps.
Fredericksburg contracts with Dominion to maintain 1,553 streetlights within the city limits.
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