The Tshwane metro streetlights, high mast area safety lights and traffic lights, all of which consume massive amounts of electricity, are all in various stages of being replaced with low electricity consumption lights. Should current tests about the latest technology involving solar panels prove to be a viable refit, streetlights will eventually be powered with solar energy. This is according to Lindela Mashigo, spokesperson for the Tshwane metro.
He said that in the metro’s energy-saving quest, several changes have been made in the past few months. ”For the immediate future, we are looking at refitting our streetlights with LEDs, which are much more efficient and use less energy. When this project runs its full course, it will contribute to a significant saving and will have long-term sustainability.”
He said that the metro recently implemented various strategies to save electricity and that their replacement of more than 20 000 125W mercury vapour lights with high pressure 70W sodium lights has already contributed towards a significant reduction in electricity usage.
Retrofitting some 250 traffic lights at intersections with new LED bulbs in place of the conventional incandescent bulbs has proved to be very successful. The municipality is already investigating the possibility of having all streetlights powered by solar energy. To this end, test lights have been erected in several areas around the city.
Mashigo said that tests were still in the early stages. ”We have, as yet, not used this technology on a large scale, because the technology is still limited and has not yet been sufficiently tested to suffice as an alternative renewable energy source.”
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