Views wanted on council's street light turn-off plans

A council that wants to turn off street lights overnight to save power and help wildlife has said a plan on how it might work could be decided in September.

Oxfordshire County Council said last year it wanted to turn off more than half of its 60,000 street lights overnight.

But the authority rowed back after a backlash over safety concerns.

It is now consulting on two broad plans that would mean lights could be turned off between 23:30 and 05:30 in rural areas, and between midnight and 05:30 in urban areas.

But they would only be implemented if they are ed locally, including by an area's county councillor and other groups.

The council said it estimated that part-time lighting could save 5,000kWh of power a day, which would save 400 tonnes of carbon and more than £400,000 a year.

They are similar savings to those the council said could be made when it first mooted the project last year.

It said "part-night lighting is not definitely happening across the whole of Oxfordshire" but the framework could be decided by the council's cabinet at a meeting in September.

If that plan is approved, town and parish councils could then apply to the county council to request part-night lighting schemes in their respective areas.

The county council said, in response to a freedom of information request submitted in March, that no parish or town councils had asked to turn off or dim their street lights.

But it said since about 2004 all of its new street lights had been dimmed from midnight to about 05:30 on traffic routes and from 22:00 to about 06:00 in residential areas.

"We want to hear people's views and concerns, especially to help us understand potential impacts on those who are perceived as being at risk from crime or harm," said Andrew Gant, the council's cabinet member for transport management.

"The aim of the policy is to improve the natural environment from a carbon and biodiversity perspective, while keeping personal and community safety as a priority consideration."

The consultation will run until 6 July.

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