Municipalities encounter challenges not seen in other types of businesses with respect to outdoor lighting. Outdoor lighting must be Provided to the Streets, Parks, Sidewalks, Parking lots and Public or Community Spaces to provide safety, accessibility and security. Standard grid supplied lights can be costly to install and maintain, and are subject to power outages. This is why municipal solar lights are a great option for municipalities. Municipal Solar Lighting can provide a cost-effective, sustainable and efficient way to create municipal outdoor lighting utilizing sunlight.
Municipal solar lighting provides a unique solution for Municipal Governments because they do not rely on the electricity grid to power them. Each solar light fixture collects energy from the sun during the day, stores that energy in batteries to provide illumination at night, and allows them to function independently of the electricity grid. This independence from the electricity grid provides Municipalities with a way to ensure that public spaces remain illuminated in the event of power outage or in areas where it would be cost-prohibitive or impractical to extend the electricity grid to those areas.
Advantages of solar lighting for municipalities
There are several advantages of implementing solar lighting as a municipal option:
Cost Savings - Solar lighting drastically reduces the amount of money a municipality spends on electric lighting. Since the sun provides energy for solar lighting, municipal governments do not have to rely on their electric utility to provide energy and subsequently pay for it. Municipalities can offset much of their "up-front" investment over time through the savings realized by solar lighting.
Low Maintenance - Solar lighting systems are manufactured using components that have been engineered for long-term outdoor use. These systems incorporate very durable materials, components that are resistant to many weather conditions, and extremely long-lasting LED lamps.
Environmentally Friendly - By utilizing a renewable source of energy to illuminate the streets and public areas within a municipality using solar-powered lights, municipalities will reduce the carbon emissions associated with the generation of electricity from non-renewable sources.
Improved security and safety - Municipal solar lighting, when designed and installed in accordance with the principles of the overall Community Development process, will provide a uniform and bright illumination level to all pedestrians/bicyclists/motorists within the confines of a municipality. Improved levels of illumination will help reduce the potential for accident-causing factors.
The versatility of municipal solar lighting allows for its installation in numerous public spaces.
Streets/Roads - Municipal solar lighting provides visibility to vehicles and pedestrians within a given roadway, thereby increasing the safety of both parties. In addition to providing a way for all individuals to see where they are going, roadways illuminated by solar lighting will help to improve traffic patterns.
Parks/Recreation Centers - Municipal solar lighting allows for evenings to provide safe access to community events, activities and exercise.
Sidewalks and Pathways - Sidewalks illuminated with solar lighting will provide pedestrians a safe way to navigate through areas of the community that may not have streetlights in close proximity to their travels.
Parking Lots/Public bldg. - Municipal solar lighting increases the level of security to both vehicles and visitors while being an energy efficient solution.
Remote/Rural Locations - Municipal solar lighting is the best solution for the majority of remote/rural areas where extending the electrical grid would be extremely high-costs or not feasible for the municipality.
Municipal solar lighting allows municipalities to provide public spaces with appropriate levels of illumination in a way that promotes safety, accessibility and responsible environmental stewardship.
Conclusion:
Municipal Solar Lighting is a cost-effective, intelligent and cost-efficient way to provide outdoor illumination for municipalities. Solar lighting provides improvements to the safety of all individuals using solar illuminated streets and sidewalks, parks and parking areas, etc. Overall, municipalities wishing to modernize their public infrastructure will benefit from the use of solar lighting.