Alabama Power helps Alabama municipalities shine
LED lights glow in Talladega. Alabama Power is working with the city to replace three different varieties of street lights with brighter, better-quality LED lighting. (Billy Brown)
New state-of-the-art LED lighting in communities across Alabama is shining a brighter light on streets and sidewalks, allowing residents to enjoy neighborhoods and city centers more safely.
This wave of enhancement is the handiwork of Alabama Power’s Lighting team – a group focused on helping communities glow to their full potential.
“Lighting truly makes communities brighter,” said Terrance Moultrie, Alabama Power’s Lighting sales manager. “Our team of lighting specialists has the knowledge, expertise and experience to design LED lighting systems that provide quality, energy efficiency and reliability to your community.”
LED light fixtures not only reduce municipal energy costs and consumption. These upgrades also increase neighborhood safety and security, allowing businesses to extend their operating hours.
The LED lighting team offers a complete range of services, including design, installation and maintenance of the system.
Since 2015, Alabama Power has worked on more than 187 projects with municipalities, with more than 180,300 fixtures replaced.
An Alabama Power worker replaces an old streetlight in Auburn as part of a joint project to increase neighborhood security and visibility. (Dennis Washington / Alabama NewsCenter)
Recently, Alabama Power began work in Auburn to upgrade fixtures with LEDs as part of a joint project to increase neighborhood security and visibility.
“We’re excited about it,” said Alison Frazier, director of Engineering Services for the city of Auburn. “We get a lot of complaints from citizens that their neighborhood is dark or their street is too dark. One of the benefits I’m hoping for is minimizing those phone calls.”
Auburn joins a growing list of cities and counties in Alabama working with Alabama Power on LED lighting upgrades. Similar projects have been started in Mobile, Birmingham and Montgomery.
”The new lights provide better-quality lighting,” said D.J. Taylor, municipal account manager for Alabama Power’s Lighting Services. “That enhances safety and security throughout the city.”
The new lights are brighter and require less maintenance than the older, high-pressure sodium, mercury-vapor and metal halide streetlights. They are more durable and last longer than traditional fixtures, in addition to providing better-quality lighting and visibility for motorists and pedestrians.
Under contracts with these cities, Alabama Power installs the LED equipment and continues to provide maintenance, repairs and replacement service for the lights and poles.
Taylor said the upgrades in Auburn are scheduled to be completed in 2022, thanks in part to the city’s help in coordinating installations.
“This is a great partnership,” Taylor said. “The citizens of Auburn will be extremely satisfied.”
Clean, consistent lighting in Talladega
The company works with municipalities of all sizes – from larger cities to more rural communities – on LED lighting upgrades.
Early in 2021, Alabama Power began working with the city of Talladega to convert more than 2,000 old-style fixtures to LEDs. The project is about 85% complete, with positive feedback already pouring in.
“We’ve received so many compliments from our residents on the lights, so far,” said Karen Phillips, director of Public Works and Animal Control for the city of Talladega. “They provide a clearer and brighter light – taking away the dark and making Talladega a brighter community.”
Robert Richardson, lighting market specialist for Alabama Power who is working on the Talladega upgrade, said the cityscape previously had three different light types and each one had a different color temperature.
A goal of the project is to get all the lights on the same page, no matter where you travel throughout Talladega.
“We are thrilled to jump right in with Talladega to provide a clean and consistent look throughout the city,” said Richardson. “The upgraded lights not only emit the same bright white color, but they have a much higher life span, with little degradation to the light output over time.”
Phillips said increased community security is important to citizens.
“Well-lighted areas can help reduce crime,” Phillips said. “We want each neighborhood and park in our city to be walkable and inviting, even as the sun goes down. These lighting upgrades have helped us create a more connected community.”
LED lighting program resources
To learn more about Alabama Power’s LED lighting program and its partnerships with municipalities, go to Alabamapower.com and search for “LED lighting.”
This story originally was published in the Alabama League of Municipalities’ Alabama Municipal Journal.
LED lighting benefits
Energy-efficient and environmentally friendly, LED lighting offers additional benefits:
- Superior lighting quality for enhanced safety and security.
- Improved uniform lighting.
- Longer fixture life.
- No mercury, lead, toxic chemicals or other known disposal hazards.
- Reduced maintenance requests.
- Instant on/no warmup.
Communities and beyond. Where can we see Alabama Power LED outdoor lights and lighting systems?
- Office parks.
- Hospitals.
- Roadways.
- Commercial businesses.
- Medical offices.
- Schools.
- Apartment complexes.
- Restaurants.
- Banks.
- Industrial facilities.
- Residential developments.
- Governmental facilities.
