RICHMOND, Va. — Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam says the state is going replace nearly 10,000 highway lights with LED lights that use less energy and increase visibility.
Northam on Wednesday announced a new contract with Trane to replace more than 9,600 lights on Virginia roads, rest areas and weigh stations. He says the upgrade will result in fewer greenhouse gas emissions and save the state $4.6 million by 2036.
"Virginia’s forward-thinking approach has made the Commonwealth a national model for safe and effective highway lighting," Secretary of Transportation Shannon Valentine said in a news release.
According to VDOT, key improvements of the lighting modernization project will include:
- Consuming 11 million fewer kilowatt-hours per year following replacement -- enough to power roughly 16,000 refrigerators for a year
- Resulting in an estimated 8,800-ton reduction in greenhouse gas emissions
- Improving drivers’ ability to see objects at night, such as pedestrians, animals, and debris
- Reducing crash risks as fewer light replacements mean fewer roadway work zones
- Saving taxpayer dollars through energy efficiency and longer product life
The new lights are expected to reduce energy consumption by 50 percent and will start being installed in the spring of 2020.
