The City of Cleveland recently announced the launch of its streetlight conversion program, a project that combines cost-saving and energy-efficient LED streetlights with smart camera technology. A total of 61,000 streetlights –owned by Cleveland Public Power (CPP) – are scheduled to be replaced over an 18-month period. The $35 million project is part of Mayor Frank G. Jackson’s Safe Smart CLE initiative.
“This is a very unique project,” said Mayor Frank G. Jackson. “Cleveland is the first and only city that offers both components at the same time – we’re changing 61,000 streetlights to LED and we’re putting cameras up in association with those streetlights for improved public safety.”
The LED lights will replace existing streetlights to reduce energy consumption, increase bulb life up to 50,000 hours and provide a life expectancy of 7-10 years longer than traditional lighting. Features include remote control access to brighten or dim lights and malfunction alerts to Cleveland Public Power for reduced repair time and maintenance cost. Upgrades will not only improve the quality of light but will also help lower CO2 levels and improve the bottom line.
Deployment of the new streetlights also supports the expansion of several safety cameras throughout the City by feeding surveillance video directly to the Cleveland Division of Police’s real-time crime center. The LED upgrades also help increase public safety by emitting direct lighting and increased control over lit areas such as residential and commercial streets and sidewalks.
“The LED streetlights are an excellent asset to CDP’s mission of protecting and serving Cleveland residents,” said Chief of Police Calvin D. Williams The lights will not only brighten up certain streets that are not well-lit, but they will also provide officers the tools we need to help locate criminals who have committed crimes. We will now be capable of reviewing high-quality footage of suspects and crimes committed all across the City of Cleveland.”
Phase one of the streetlight conversion begins in Ward 1 with LED streetlight and smart camera installations in the Lee-Harvard neighborhood. The city plans to install LED lights and cameras near its 22 recreation centers and, in Wards where there are no recreation centers, in crime hotspots and main streets and intersections.
For more information on Safe Smart CLE and progress on the project visit www.cpp.org.
Additional partners in the Safe Smart CLE streetlight conversion project include Siemens, Ten Connected Solutions and Telematics.