Ameresco has connected approximately 280,000 street light fixtures across Chicago as part of a $160 million project.
Ameresco says it has replaced about 85% of the US city’s street lights with smart LEDs.
According to Ameresco, the new fixtures use 50-75% less electricity, effectively cutting associated energy costs in half, and last two to three times as long as traditional high-pressure sodium lights.
The city is projected to save $12.4m in electricity this year alone and more than $100m in electricity costs throughout the next ten years.
Additionally, the modernisation effort seeks to improve public safety in Chicago by providing higher quality, more reliable lighting.
The four-year project was completed in collaboration with the Chicago Department of Transportation (CDoT), Itron, John Burns Construction and Lyons View Manufacturing, a certified minority business enterprise dedicated to creating job opportunities for local residents.
CDoT commissioner Gia Biagi says: “The programme has made Chicago a greener city and is providing clearer, more reliable night time lighting in every neighbourhood. And the smart lighting management is making our operations more efficient, enabling our workforce to respond to outages more quickly when they occur.”
Lou Maltezos, executive vice president at Ameresco, says: “We commend the city of Chicago and its leadership for successfully completing a project that has become a blueprint for future smart lighting implementations. One of the major benefits of the Chicago Smart Lighting Programme is, of course, the energy savings which then translates into cost savings, and ultimately a reduction in the city’s carbon footprint.”
