BBC CWR interviews: street lighting
Peter Samwell is the area manager for the north of Warwickshire and looks after the highways that are in the county council’s remit.
Peter and his colleagues have had a particularly difficult time in recent months as they are responsible for the state of roads. The weather conditions have caused terrific damage to many road surfaces. Rain, snow, frost and extreme cold are all catalysts for potholes and it has been an endless task resurfacing damaged roads.
On top of that, Peter also oversees street lighting. With 1,740 kilometres of highway falling under the county’s jurisdiction, street lighting is a major expense. The energy usage is something that the county council has been seeking to address with the trial of low energy lighting in certain areas of the county. Peter explained to BBC Coventry and Warwickshire how the lighting levels are varied in selected areas and the public’s reaction to them.
“What we have is a system where we can vary the light levels in the streetlights so they’re at a lower level most of the night but brightened during the rush hour period.
“We’ve installed these in about 180 lights across the county. We’ve had them in operation about 18 months in Hatton, Kenilworth, Warwick, Nuneaton and North Warwickshire.“
“The public themselves haven’t made any reports about the fact that they’ve got variable lighting levels.”
BBC Reporter: “So. Either nobody’s noticed or nobody has particularly minded?”
Peter Samwell: “I think it’s probably the case that nobody’s noticed.”
The interview with Peter Wilson is part of a series of interviews with Warwickshire County Council officers as part of the BBC’s national campaign highlighting the pressures faced by local authorities as they set their budgets for the forthcoming year.