At the May 15 Ward 3 meeting, Akron residents again raised concerns about persistent streetlight outages across the city. Utilities Coordinator Joe Kunzler acknowledged the problem, calling Akron’s streetlight situation “embarrassing.”
He pointed to a mix of outdated infrastructure, wire theft and cost barriers that have stalled a full transition to LED lighting.
Multiple causes for streetlight outages
During the June 12 Ward 6 meeting, Kunzler told residents that street light outages are caused by many things, including:
- Limited control because of an agreement with Ohio Edison, which maintains most streetlights.
- Slow and expensive conversion to LED lights, which currently cost the city more both from a hardware standpoint (LEDs cost more up front but use less energy over time) and because it is paying a favorable low rate in an energy program (ESIP) that will go away with new lights.
- An increase in thefts in the last several years. Kunzler said LED lights are on black/silver-colored, steel/metal/fiberglass light poles and have wire running underground feeding them electricity. Thieves are stealing the underground wire. The city is working to catch thieves, including installation of video cameras. Also, Kunzler said that lights are being left on to curb thefts.
- Line cuts due to construction digging because of fiber network installations for high-speed internet, lead pipe service replacements and water and sewer repairs, Kunzler said. When these projects have a backhoe dig into the ground, lines powering lights can be disrupted. The city will require projects to run their work through any underground conduits, if available, to try to limit disruption to nearby lines, he said.
- Rodents chew on underground wire — for example, Kunzler said, city workers recently found a dead squirrel near a light pole and believe the squirrel shorted out the pole.
- Mechanical issues and older infrastructure that, on hot days, cause the light poles to lose power because a new or bigger transformer is needed for the area.
- Tree roots can damage underground wires, Kunzler said. Lights on wooden light poles with aerial electrical lines are more reliable.
- Careless drivers and accidents that involve light poles, especially in roundabouts, can be a cause of outages.
LEDs cost more up front, despite long-term savings
The City of Akron said that most of its streetlights are maintained by Ohio Edison, which provides the city with a lower-than-average electric rate for streetlights through the Efficiency Safety Incentive Program (ESIP).The lower rate through this program would not be available to Akron if it switches to LED lighting.
Completely switching to LED lighting, city officials said, would increase Akron’s annual energy costs by more than $800,000…