An official website of Arlington County government

Streetlight Upgrade

Carlyle LED Streetlight

Construction Update

Work is underway to install approximately 150 streetlights on Columbia Pike, from S. Scott Street to S. Frederick Street, with energy-efficient LED lights. The lights have a 30-year life expectancy, reduce light pollution, and dim automatically based on time of day. The energy savings will pay back the cost of the lights and construction in 10 to 15 years.

Project Plan

In early 2012, Arlington County will upgrade the streetlights along Columbia Pike from S. Scott Street to S. Frederick Street with energy-efficient LED (light-emitting diode) streetlights. These state-of-the-art streetlights will improve safety and visibility for vehicles and pedestrians while reducing energy and maintenance costs.

As part of the effort to create a main street environment on Columbia Pike, the new streetlights will be the double globe, Carlyle style LED lights that match the look and feel of recent street improvements.

The new energy-efficient streetlights also support Arlington’s environmental and energy goals:

  • The streetlights meet or exceed the International Dark Sky Association standards. They do not produce upward light and backlight above a 45 degree angle, thus reducing light pollution and minimizing interferences with wildlife.
  • The streetlights do not contain mercury and PCB contents.
  • The system’s wireless capability will allow the County’s Traffic Management Center (TMC) to remotely manage and program the lights to gradually and automatically dim according to the time of day and the surrounding area (commercial or residential).
  • The County anticipates an energy cost savings of nearly 80% annually and a further reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.

The project was initiated by the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) following a lighting and safety study and recently established lighting standards. The project was transferred to Arlington County when management of the Pike transferred to the County in 2010.

Proposed Timeline

Construction is slated to begin in early 2012. The work will take approximately five months to complete.

Funding

The $1.2 million project is funded through the Federal Highway Administration’s (FHWA) Highway Safety Improvement program and administered through VDOT.