By Tyler Sutherland
New energy efficient street lights will soon be installed along Manitoba roadways.
Manitoba Hydro launched its Power Smart LED Roadway Lighting Conversion Program Wednesday in Brandon, showcasing the new lighting technology on Queens Avenue East in Brandon. The street will be the first in the province to see the conversion.
Hydro will convert 130,000 High Pressure Sodium (HPS) streetlights province-wide to new LEDs over the next seven years. The initiative is expected to save five megawatts (MW) and 35 gigawatt hours (GW.h) of energy — equivalent to the energy consumed by 2,200 average homes in Manitoba in one year.
The new LED lights have several benefits over HPS lamps including a much longer life expectancy, significantly lower energy use, better performance in cold weather, and improved quality of light for drivers and pedestrians, Hydro says.
