City of Pittsburg

In 2001, the City had success when it converted 59 traffic signals to energy-saving LED technology, resulting in significant energy and maintenance savings. The City hoped for the same success when upgrading high-pressure sodium (HPS) streetlights to LED. After researching lighting technologies by evaluating illumination performance, maintenance requirements, as well as potential energy and maintenance savings, the City chose Cree^® LEDway^® luminaires.

Cree^® proved to be the right choice as initial estimates indicate the City will reduce energy consumption by 59 percent and reduce maintenance and service costs by 60 percent annually as a result of upgrading 1,307 HPS streetlights to Cree^®. The City anticipates an annual savings in excess of $76,000 with eliminating 281,413 pounds of greenhouse gas.

“The conversion to LED will not only help achieve our initial goal of reducing operating expenses, it will help us get closer to meeting environmental goals and initiatives by saving energy and reducing greenhouse gas emissions,” said Laura Wright, City of Pittsburg’s Environmental Services. “The City hopes to have the rest of its streetlights owned by Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) converted from HPS to LED so we can be the first City with all LED street lights.”

In addition, feedback from residents has been positive. City police and residents prefer the whiter light emitted from LEDway^® streetlights. The colors appear more realistic, helping to more easily identify vehicles and pedestrians at night. The LED streetlighting has also improved uniformity in lighting levels along thoroughfares for improved aesthetics.

The City’s streetlight upgrade project was funded by the Federal Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG), various funding sources within the City and PG&E rebates for LED streetlights.