Remote-controlled LED system could represent future of urban lighting

Forward-looking San Francisco is set to install thousands of LED bulbs controlled by wireless technology in a number of city centre neighbourhoods.

In a move that is likely to be closely followed by environmentally and financially-conscious local authorities right around the world, the Californian city is to spend $16 million revamping its urban lighting.

For starters, some 18,500 streetlights will be fitted with energy-efficient LED bulbs, with this technology set to lower both the size of the city's carbon footprint as well as the size of its utilities bills.

At the same time, the San Francisco Examiner reports, money will also be invested in connecting every single LED light to a central wireless control system.

This system will enable council employees to monitor lighting in real time, for instance pinpointing broken bulbs and getting new ones fitted straight away.

Furthermore, it will also give lighting chiefs the chance to adjust the brightness of the bulbs remotely, allowing them to respond to feedback from residents and also take into account the time of day or if there are any special events going on in a particular neighbourhood.

According to the local newspaper, two inner-city neighbourhoods will pilot the new technology at the start of next year, with the initiative then set to be extended should it prove a success.

At the same time, a local council in Northern Ireland is being urged to make use of the energy-saving benefits of LED lighting.

With an eye on successful schemes elsewhere in the British Isles, supporters of the technology are lobbying Londonderry council to replace traditional sodium-streetlights, arguing that replacing them with LED bulbs will help cut both bills and carbon emissions by around 40 per cent.

In particular, the Londonderry Sentinel reports, the city of Sheffield in the north of England is being help up as a good example of how upfront investment in such new technology can bring longer-term environmental and financial benefits.