Rochester to convert all remaining streetlights to LED in 2020

The City of Rochester is looking to cut back on its energy bill with the installation of LED streetlights citywide.

Included in the 2020 budget is a plan to spend $4 million converting all remaining streetlights from high-pressure sodium to LED. The funding will come from an interfund loan, which will be paid back over an 11-year period using savings on utility costs and annual lighting maintenance.

Already, the city has converted 2,280 streetlights over to the more energy-efficient LED bulbs. The project planned for next year will involve changing over the remaining 6,750 streetlights.

“LED streetlights are another step forward in advancing the City Council’s foundational principle of environmental stewardship,” said City Administrator Steve Rymer. “LED lighting is more efficient and will have both environmental and economic benefits for our community.”

In recent years, other cities across the U.S. — including several here in Minnesota, like Minneapolis and Duluth — have also begun phasing out high-pressure sodium (HPS) lights in favor of the brighter LED bulbs.

The reason for the transition is that LEDs — which emit a white light compared to the traditional yellow/orange glow — are both more efficient and have a longer lifespan. It is estimated, for instance, that LEDs use 70 percent less energy than HPS systems to deliver the same illumination.

Despite those glaring benefits, however, the new lights have been met with some resistance. That is mostly due to the discomfort they cause to the human eye. LEDs emit higher levels of short-wavelength blue light than the old-school lamps. If not properly managed, the color temperatures can cause issues seeing clearly while driving and getting to sleep.

Recognizing those concerns, Rymer said staff from both Public Works and Rochester Public Utilities are drafting guidelines that take into account recommendations from the American Medical Association (AMA).

The AMA issued those LED guidelines in 2016. While supportive of a "proper conversion to community based LED lighting, which reduces energy consumption and decreases the use of fossil fuels,” the AMA said it “encourage[s] minimizing and controlling blue-rich environmental lighting by using the lowest emission of blue light possible to reduce glare." It further suggested keeping outdoor lights to 3000 Kelvin (K) or lower.

Sean Baker is a Rochester journalist and the founder of Med City Beat.

Cover photo: LED streetlights / licensed from Getty