City to begin replacing sodium streetlights with LED lights
9/10/2020, 6 p.m.
During the next two years, Richmond will install longer-lasting LED lights in 7,500 streetlights — the first big step to a full conversion.
The project, expected to cost more than $3.3 million, involves replacing the current high-pressure sodium lights with the light- emitting diodes, or LED lights, that consume less energy and last four times as long.
Richmond currently operates about 37,000 streetlights, according to the Department of Public Utilities.
The department began testing LED lighting in 2018 in six areas.
LED lighting initially is more expensive, costing $440 per fixture compared with $240 per fixture for sodium, the department stated. But the LED lights save money over time. They are 80 percent more efficient in generating light than sodium and last 20 years compared to five for the sodium lighting, the department noted.
