Newport: Plans to switch off street lights in new budget

Street lights in Newport will be switched off at night if the plans are approved

Most street lights could be switched off overnight in Newport in a bid to cut costs.

Currently, every other LED light in the city gets turned off from midnight until 06:00.

But Newport council plans to switch-off all 19,000 lights except at "safety critical sites" as part of its 2023/24 budget.

It comes as it consults on a draft budget, including a council tax rise of 9.5%.

Switching the lights off would reduce the carbon emissions from the streetlighting electricity the authority uses "by 198,548 kgCO2 (198.5 tonnes) or around 21% of our current streetlighting total per year", according to its plan.

The plan also suggests cutting the annual maintenance budget by £100,000 to £265,000.

Newport's only Green Party councillor, Lauren James, said safety should come before energy saving, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS).

Ms James, who represents the Shaftesbury ward, said: "We have still got to make sure people are safe.

"I hope that the council is looking into it, and making sure that there are things like high-visibility strips on steps, so it's safe for those who do have to be out at those times."

'Extremely concerned about crime rates'

Independent councillor Andrew Sterry said residents in his Lliswerry ward have expressed concerns at the council's proposal.

Green Party councillor Lauren James says safety should come before energy savings

Mr Sterry said: "I am against this proposal as I received many comments from my residents and they're extremely concerned about crime rates going up.

"It wasn't that long ago that all the street lights were changed to LED to save costs."

Newport council opened up a public consultation on its draft budget on 15 December 2022, which is due to close on 2 February 2023.

The plans include a 9.5% council tax rise due to "increasing costs and pressures faced by the council".