53,000 streetlights on Oahu converted to bright, energy-efficient LEDs

HONOLULU, Hawaii (HawaiiNewsNow) - The streets of Oahu are a little bit brighter thanks to the city’s partnership with Johnson Controls.

On Tuesday, city leaders were joined at Honolulu Hale by Hawaii Energy and Johnson Controls to announce the completion of work to install some 53,000 LED streetlights in Oahu neighborhoods.

It’s a change that will likely save millions per year in utility costs.

“LED lights make the streets brighter. Now why do we like this? I think it’s obvious to most people. A brighter street is a safer street - for pedestrians maybe crossing, for people driving down the street, and also to cut down on crime,” Mayor Caldwell said.

Work to convert the street lights began in November 2017.

The new energy-efficient lights will save a projected $5 million a year, and continues to move Hawaii closer to its clean-energy goals.

“Most people don’t realize that energy efficiency can get us halfway to the Co2 reductions that we need to be able to achieve. And this project alone is going to save over 300,000 tons of Co2 emissions over the lifetime of the equipment that’s installed,” said Brian Kealoha, Hawaii Energy Executive Director.

During a news conference, Hawaii Energy presented the city with a $1.9 million rebate check as a result of the energy savings from the LED lights.

According to the city, the $46.6 million project was financed through Johnson Controls, so the city did not expend any upfront funds.