Street lighting is an excellent way of increasing road and general safety at night and improves the quality of life for residents by helping to deter and reduce the fear of crime. Modern street lighting often uses white light. This helps facial recognition and aids CCTV viewing and the vast majority of residents tell us that white light makes them feel more secure on the streets at night. The council's street lighting team works closely with residents and community groups on schemes across the borough.
There are currently 32,000 street lighting columns and 5,000 illuminated traffic signs and bollards in Wigan Borough. They are maintained by the street lighting team in the council's Environmental Services Department.
The Council's annual street lighting energy costs are around £700,000. This means that every single resident gets a full year's street lighting service for under £2 a year. The council has a contract for the supply of energy to power all the borough's street lighting which is based on the number of street lights and the wattage rating of each lamp. The supply is from renewable wind energy sources.
Recent schemes
- In 2002, Worsley Mesnes and Norley landed a £580,000 grant through the Single Regeneration Budget (SRB6) to pay for a massive transformation of the local environment, including a big increase in the number of street lights.
- In 2005, Pemberton had 23 brighter, more attractive new lamps installed, replacing the 20 old columns along the top end of Ormskirk Road. Local traders were polled as to the kind of replacement lights they would like to see on their streets. And all respondants to the post-scheme survey thought it was a worthwhile use of council funds.
- New columns with unique brackets were installed in Tyldesley in 2006. The town centre community have selected the bracket design which includes the town's name and a Lancashire rose.
- Residents' feedback surveys following other lighting schemes show that the majority of residents are very satisfied with the team's work. In particular, there is strong support for innovations such as modern white lighting, which aids facial recognition in the dark and on CCTV. Over 91% of residents say this increases their feelings of night-time road safety and sense of personal security.
