Street lights to be dimmed in three areas of Sheffield as part of plan to reduce emissions

The dimming will be trialled in Crosspool, Endcliffe and Meersbrook from Monday, August 19 until Friday, September 13 and will see lighting levels reduced by up to an additional 14 per cent.

If approved, the changes will be implemented across the city and reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 380 tonnes.

Households in the chosen areas for the trial will receive a letter inviting them to an information session and consultation on the proposals.

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Coun Lewis Dagnall, Sheffield Council’s Cabinet member for environment and street scene, said: “We know that lighting levels will be of interest to most people in the city and, for that reason, we are inviting people to have their say on our proposals.

“As a council, we are committed to achieving the objectives set out in our Green City Strategy and take the necessary steps to becoming a zero-carbon city by 2050, in the midst of this current climate emergency.

“We fully recognise that the transition to a low carbon economy is not going to be easy, and there will be difficult decisions to make along the way, but, ultimately it’s about doing the right thing for people across our city and enhancing and protecting Sheffield’s environment for everyone to enjoy now and in the future.

“Thanks to the Streets Ahead investment, we are proud to have one of the best street lighting networks in the country, and our intention was always to take advantage of its ability to adjust lighting levels responsively to react to the changing levels of traffic and footfall.

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“These proposals put us in a somewhat fortunate position where we can adjust our pioneering lighting system and still achieve good lighting levels, whilst maintaining safe highways conditions and above all, making valuable reductions in carbon, energy and cost.”

The council said the proposals will see street lights switch on responsively at 80 per cent instead of the current 84 per cent before midnight and reduce from 54 per cent to 40 per cent at midnight until 5am, while still meeting the requirements of the current national Code of Practice.

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Sheffield Council said it had made South Yorkshire Police aware of the proposals and emergency services will still be able to request an increase in lighting levels, in response to certain incidents, when required.

The city-wide consultation will open in coming weeks and once live, will be available on the council’s website at: https://sheffield.citizenspace.com/