I am not really sure as to what to think about the new lights installed on lamp posts recently by a contractor.
How much saving shall we expect?..is it a local contractor? It is defenitetly different and you can notice the change when going from LED to the HPS
the new street lighting gives a shady hue, not as bright…and we were just discussing the safety of pedestrians crossing the street, seems harder to see clearly…
Definitely a little harder to see while driving due to the lenses not being obstructed far enough on either side. But if you look at the light scatter it looked to me, comparing LED lamps on Hays Cove Circle, to amber lamps on Frederick, that the light actually reached out further.
I’m not really down with the cool white hue. I went back to all incandescent in my home, albeit at a lower wattage. Those LED hues and the flourescent replacements give me a headache.
That’s progress though, out with the old, to make more money from exporting our hydro to the US and screwing the population with drastic measures that affect our living conditions (lighting). Humerous actually, I pay more money in hydro, to live in a dimly lit home, with lights that don’t give me headaches. I thought we had tons of water to run through turbines in BC? Maybe we can stop exporting a bit.
All this energy saving shit drives me mad, please tell me I am not the only one…
I think the new lights are shitty… you cannot see the streets as well as with the old lights…
Damn slow down lol. Yes some of us don’t like the new lights.
I absolutely hate them…I think they look sterile and an unwelcoming.
They don’t light up the neighborhood as much as the old ones did.
I REALLY wish the city would have SERIOUSLY looked into this and perhaps gauged the public, because the road is certainly much harder to see now.
One more blunder from our city.
Hi all,
I’m with CBC Radio Daybreak North. I’m interested in talking to one or more of you about your complaints about these lamps. If you are interested, please email me andrew[dot]kurjata[at]cbc[dot]ca with a number I can reach you at. Thanks!
I thought the amber colored lights were more suited for foggy conditions. These new ones are awfully white.
I think they are great. Walk west of Sears on 2nd Avenue West adjacent the tennis courts and look from the bridge to the end of 2nd Avenue (1 km) and you will notice a significant increase in detail and brightness from before. Pedestrians walking their dog are much easier to see, for example. I think LED lighting takes some getting used to for some but the advantages far outweigh the disadvantages. Beyond the obvious energy savings, better colour rendering, less dark areas between lights, no mercury, to name a few. I would suggest getting used to LED sooner rather than later because many are predicting the majority of households in BC and Canada will have LED lighting by the end of this decade. Newer LED technologies and rising costs of electricity will be the defining factor. My only concern with switching to this technology for the city is the quality of the LED lighting system. Some cheaper systems start noticeably losing their brightness after only a few years. Otherwise I am all for these LED street lights.
Amber light does not penetrate through fog any more or less than any other colour in the spectrum. I believe the reasons for using amber/yellow fog lights some time ago were that it was easier on the eyes when reflected back into the drivers face. Fog lights on cars are mounted low on the vehicle to help reduce the light reflected back onto the driver so the importance of colour is less important. You will also notice most fog lights on vehicles are no longer the amber/yellow in colour of yesterday. With street lights this is a non issue as light colour does nothing to increase fog penetration.
I agree… hate the new lites…I found a place that sells 100 watt and 75 watt incandescent bulbs,that last for 20 yrs!!!Bought a life time supply.
Can I ask which brand? Just interested to find out what makes them 20 year life bulbs. In many cases I found the advertised “long lasting” incandescent bulbs came with just thicker tungsten coils in the bulb and did absolutely nothing to prevent the tungsten vapour from condensing on the inside of the bulb, blackening it, after a couple/few years use; significantly lowering light output. They were good at surviving power surges though.
[quote=“Dex”]
Amber light does not penetrate through fog any more or less than any other colour in the spectrum. I believe the reasons for using amber/yellow fog lights some time ago were that it was easier on the eyes when reflected back into the drivers face. Fog lights on cars are mounted low on the vehicle to help reduce the light reflected back onto the driver so the importance of colour is less important. You will also notice most fog lights on vehicles are no longer the amber/yellow in colour of yesterday. With street lights this is a non issue as light colour does nothing to increase fog penetration.[/quote]
And that is still true today in comparison to the LED.
I think the lights have left everything looking sterile and unwelcoming. I also don’t think they light the streets up any better…if anything, they have made the streets darker overall.
[quote=“bthedog”]
Amber light does not penetrate through fog any more or less than any other colour in the spectrum. I believe the reasons for using amber/yellow fog lights some time ago were that it was easier on the eyes when reflected back into the drivers face. Fog lights on cars are mounted low on the vehicle to help reduce the light reflected back onto the driver so the importance of colour is less important. You will also notice most fog lights on vehicles are no longer the amber/yellow in colour of yesterday. With street lights this is a non issue as light colour does nothing to increase fog penetration.
And that is still true today in comparison to the LED. [/quote]
The source of the light is of no consequence. LED lights can have yellow/Amber lenses on them as well.
[quote=“bthedog”]
I think the lights have left everything looking sterile and unwelcoming. I also don’t think they light the streets up any better…if anything, they have made the streets darker overall.[/quote]
I wonder why then that the city chose to go with that hue for these lights…
I would hazard a guess it was because we are not driving the light pole.
I also like the new ones better; things are brighter and easier to see. I think the orangish hue of the old ones was actually more creepy and, therefore, unwelcoming.
Have to agree with Dex on this one. I find them brighter and can see things better in the evening…especially pedestrians.