Sydney Councils to Switch off Street lights!!!

[mswhin63 (Malcolm)]

It is obvious that many people here have the right idea to put to councils but what is really needed to communities together.

Recently I saw a website address that pertain to light reduction but was so brief I couldn't get the full details, haven't seen it since. They seem to have an excellent marketing campaign (visually). I was thinking that Astro Clubs and associations should get together with these organisations to give the extra beef to government. Better eduction to the government will have a flow on effect to consumers.

Simple things like efficient reflectors can allow councils to lower the wattage of their globes to produce effective lighting in the right areas.

[Jen]

Originally Posted by icytailmark

just saw on the news that some councils may not be able to afford to keep the street lights on. How awesome is that for sydney astronomers!!!

[Kevnool (Kev)]

Lets forget about cars trucks busses any thing else.

Lose your streetlights then there goes most of you security the criminal activity will increase....is the pay off is better for backyard astronomers well no unless they were all gone.....If this happens then watch everyone complain again about muggings and the rest , its a viscious circle.

My street light is no problem out the front of my house i even have an outside yard light that burns till 11.00pm.

Better stop now gotta go.

Cheers Kev.

[Ric]

As a kid I lived in one of the suburbs in the shadow of Mt Stromlo. I remember that the Chief Minister at the time replaced all the streetlight bulbs with a low wattage sodium bulb (I think it was sodium).

The effect was to reduce light pollution for the telescopes nearby without losing any of the lighting in the suburbs.

I remember the suburbs being bathed in a cool orange glow without any effect on visibility. Whats stopping the councils doing that again. I'm sure that would help reduce their light bill.

[pgc hunter]

What is really needed is full cut off fixtures, not the rubbish we have now lining our streets. With the abhorrent design of streetlights in Australia, I believe installing full cutoffs would noticably reduce light pollution. I also noticed that overhead road signs are illuminated from below spilling light directly into the sky.

[Screwdriverone (Chris)]

Add to the fact Alex, that crime will probably increase (opportunistic burglary) due to the easier getaway prospects. More efficient and downward pointing lights is the key, rather than turn off crappy expensive (to run) ones.

It's not that hard to understand, just needs someone with kahunas to implement the change...

Cheers

Chris

[multiweb (Marc)]

What about if they installed some motion sensors for the areas that don't need to be lit up all the time? Like residential areas or outside of the major traffic arteries, etc... Would that work?

[joeallen (Joe)]

Out here in Melton Vic, if you come west from the ring road, you get blinded by the lights at the melton harness track. Even thought they are 2 km away they still blind you.
The more light there is at night, the HIGHER the crime rate, the crims like the light to see what they are destroying. As for lights on roads, years ago with sealed beam lights on cars, you needed them. With our present lights on cars, we do not need streetlights.

These high rises in Melbourne need to switch their lights off at night. Think of how much carbon we could not put in the air so we can have this freedom robbing ets krudd is jamming down our throats.

And yes, I hope all the councils run out of money. Turn off all these useless street lights which light up the sky more than the roads. Would do more to save the world than going back to krudd's dark ages he so longs for. For us, that is, not for him.

[Paul Haese]

Couple of misnomers -

1. Street lighting does not reduce criminal activity. Security lighting does not either. Several studies in Europe have shown this to be true.

2. Street lighting does not prevent pedestrian deaths either. Pedestrians do not use the same part of the road.

Vehicles have head lights, generally when switched on during night time the driver can see the road. Having street lights on does not increase visibility.

Many people live by a fortress mentality and lights make it right. Not true, lights affect animals and humans more adversely than many of you might know.

Personally I reckon switching the lights off is a good idea.

[bojan]

Originally Posted by pgc hunter

Great news. Here's hoping that Melbourne councils run out of money aswell!

Wishful thinking..
However, they will just increase rates, I am afraid..

[multiweb (Marc)]

Originally Posted by Paul Haese

Couple of misnomers -

1. Street lighting does not reduce criminal activity. Security lighting does not either. Several studies in Europe have shown this to be true.

Not sure there. Things go 'boo' in the dark. I have a street light in front of my block that was broken a couple of years ago and it was real dark for a couple of weeks until the council decided to fix it. You'd be surprised the amount of people (mostly pissed) trying to break-in through the side gate of my house to get in the backyard or at the back of the house. That was annoying and a reminder that there are a lot of people out there watching and waiting. It is a residential area though, not rural as yours so lot more traffic maybe.

[renormalised (Carl)]

No, Paul is right. Having the lights on all the time doesn't reduce crime. Not only studies in Europe, but quite a few studies in the US have shown exactly the same outcome. The crims would rather the lights be on because it's not only safer for them, it makes their getaways easier and quicker. Most burglars would rather not grope about in the dark, and most muggers use the light to confuse people...you stand under a streetlight and try to look into a dark alley, or try to look through a streetlight into one. The glare makes it almost impossible. Even when you're driving along a road, the glare can prevent you from seeing things you'd normally would otherwise.

They talk about wanting to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, well here's a way for them to help do so...re-engineer the lighting in towns and cities or do away with it for the most part as it's not really needed for much of the time.

[Steffen]

Originally Posted by multiweb

Things go 'boo' in the dark.

I think this just about sums up our fears leading to over-lighting. We're instinctively afraid of the evil that might be lurking in the dark and try to create a comfort zone around us free from darkness. However, criminals are not predators adapted to night vision, they're humans like you and me. They need light to conduct their "business". Street and security lights provide them with safe "working" conditions without the need for torches (that would give them away in the dark). Hard lighting and glare also gives them plenty of dark shade and blind spots to slip into in case they're disturbed.

Cheers
Steffen.

[multiweb (Marc)]

@ Carl & Steffen - I see your point but in practice believe me not having that street light in front of the house did create a lot of problems for me. Now people are just not game enough to come in the front because there's no way to hide and it is fully lit. Motion sensor and a timer under some street lights might be a solution. How do they turn on and off now? It must be some kind of brightness detection because when there's a storm and it goes dark they turn on automatically in my area.

[astroron (Ron)]

Most of the schools in this country are lit up like the Center of Sydney, yet they get vandalized to the tune of millions of dollars a year
They don't need torches to see what they are doing as the places is so well lit

[GTB_an_Owl (Geoff)]

i have to say that when one of our street lights nearby has been out - so have the burglers

but i do have to wonder - if it was all dark - what would they do ?

street lights for cars - don't need them
footpath lights for pedestrians - maybe

geoff

[GTB_an_Owl (Geoff)]

just as a further note

as a driver - i need to know where the side of the road is - not the middle

geoff

[DavidTrap (David)]

They will never turn off street or security lights. Regardless of any studies, the media would have a field day when a young lady gets raped in an area where lights had been turned off.

I remember when I was at UQ, the uni admin and security would walk around the campus at night to work out where extra lighting was needed to make everyone feel safe.

The new lights on the go-between bridge in Brisbane are prime examples of inefficient lighting - the light points up into a reflector angled at 45 degrees. They look artistic, but not very friendly for light pollution...

DT

[Allan_L (Allan)]

Originally Posted by Paul Haese

Couple of misnomers -

1. Street lighting does not reduce criminal activity. Security lighting does not either. Several studies in Europe have shown this to be true.

2. Street lighting does not prevent pedestrian deaths either. Pedestrians do not use the same part of the road.

Vehicles have head lights, generally when switched on during night time the driver can see the road. Having street lights on does not increase visibility.

Many people live by a fortress mentality and lights make it right. Not true, lights affect animals and humans more adversely than many of you might know.

Personally I reckon switching the lights off is a good idea.

At last, someone who agrees with me.
Good one Paul.
BTW Paul, I have on-sold your old C9.25.
But I miss it. It was a beauty.
But replacement CPC1100 is good too.

[Paul Haese]

Originally Posted by Allan_L

BTW Paul, I have on-sold your old C9.25.

Off topic but that scope was a fine piece of work. Very sharp optics in that one. I hope the person you sold it to appreciates it.