Lighting - street lights - energy reduction programme
North Yorkshire County Council is changing its street lighting policy. From April 2012, the County Council is introducing a street lighting energy reduction scheme, which will be implemented over four years. This will form part of our overall carbon reduction management programme aimed at making North Yorkshire greener.
 The County Council is responsible for nearly 50,000 street lights. In 2010/11, the cost of electricity for street lighting was about £1.6m. The scheme will lead to a reduction in our street lighting energy consumption that could save almost £400,000 a year. By reducing our carbon emissions we will also cut the street lighting element of the carbon tax paid to the Government by 28%.
The County Council will ensure that crime, disorder and road safety issues are considered before decisions are made. There are three new options for street lighting across the county. - Part-night lighting
Street lights in North Yorkshire currently switch on at dusk and off at dawn. The new policy could see about 60% of our street lights switching off in the early hours of the morning, most likely between midnight and 5am, when road use is at a minimum. - Dimming
We plan to install dimming technology in some of our brighter lanterns. This will reduce the level of illumination when road use is at a minimum and reduce energy consumption by 15%. We expect that this will affect about 4% of our street lights. - Removal of street lighting
This will only take place in areas where road safety will not be compromised and is likely to affect less than 2% of the street lights in North Yorkshire.
The part-night lighting scheme commenced in Harrogate and Knaresborough in August 2012. Scarborough is scheduled to be completed by February 2013. The programme will be extended across the rest of North Yorkshire between April 2013 and March 2016. Areas that will not be affected by these proposals- Main traffic routes and road junctions (dimming of streetlights may be introduced if appropriate).
- Locations with a significant road traffic night time accident record.
- Areas with a significant record of night time crime or anti social behaviour.
- Lights outside sheltered housing and other residences accommodating vulnerable people.
- Areas with 24hour operational emergency services including hospitals.
- Potential hazards on the highway such as traffic calming, speed humps and road crossings.
- Parts of town centres that have concentrated night time activity or economy.
- Areas covered by CCTV operations.
Viewing proposalsFind out what alterations are proposed for where you live below on our interactive map. Comments can be submitted using our online form.  
Lighting - street light energy reduction programme - frequently asked questions
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