Victoria, BC Undertakes $2.1M LED Streetlight Conversion

Victoria, BC Undertakes $2.1-million LED Streetlight Conversion

July 22, 2016

BC’s capital city plans to convert existing high pressure sodium streetlights to “warm” 3,000K LED fixtures in residential areas and brighter 4,000K fixtures in all signalized intersections and marked crosswalks, reports Bill Cleverley in the Times Colonist.

“We are actually replacing apples with oranges here,” Fraser Work, the city’s Director of Engineering, recently told city councillors. “The wattage and performance attributes of LEDs are inherently different than what we are seeing in the HPS.”

In his presentation to council, Work cited a U.S. Department of Energy report projecting 100% market penetration of LEDs by 2030.

The city will begin the program to replace its 6,500 streetlights this fall. The change is expected to take about 18 months, and will likely pay for itself in 9 years.

Existing streetlights (excluding ornamental lights) consume nearly five million kilowatt hours of electricity a year, which costs $500,000, and account for a large portion of $1 million a year in maintenance costs.

The 3,000K warm white LED has been endorsed by the International Dark Sky Association, a non-profit organization with a mission “to preserve and protect the nighttime environment and our heritage of dark skies through quality outdoor lighting,” reports Cleverley.

Photo courtesy of City of Victoria.

Related Articles


Latest Articles


Changing Scene

  • City of Winnipeg Continues to Improve Online Permits System

    City of Winnipeg Continues to Improve Online Permits System

    July 4, 2025 The City of Winnipeg has launched an improved Permits Online web portal. This upgrade makes the permit process more convenient for our customers. Permits Online is a one-stop shop to manage the permit process. Now, the web portal is easier to use because customers can navigate it using their mobile device. The portal is… Read More…

  • Schneider Electric Launches Chapter 3 of Sustainability School

    Schneider Electric Launches Chapter 3 of Sustainability School

    July 4, 2025 Schneider Electric, the leader in the digital transformation of energy management and automation, has launched Chapter 3 of its online Sustainability School, a free training program designed to empower its channel ecosystem partners to become leaders in sustainability. This chapter will focus on teaching businesses how to decarbonize and unlock the competitive… Read More…

  • United Chargers Launches Grizzl-E Club Charger-as-a-Service Subscription Model

    United Chargers Launches Grizzl-E Club Charger-as-a-Service Subscription Model

    July 4, 2025 United Chargers Inc., known for the Grizzl-E line of EV chargers, announces Grizzl-E Club, a first-of-its-kind charger as a service that provides a free EV Charger and pays drivers back for charging. Grizzl-E Club is designed to make EV ownership more rewarding, accessible, and future-ready. Beginning July 1st, Canadians can join the Grizzl-E… Read More…

  • Consultation on Potential Tariff Remission for Certain Imports

    Consultation on Potential Tariff Remission for Certain Imports

    July 4, 2025 The Department of Finance Canada is reaching out to Canadian producers and industry associations regarding the potential remission of tariffs on certain imports from the United States and China. The Department has outlined its framework and process for how it will consider remission requests for tariffs on products from the United States (U.S.) and China…. Read More…