“I light up my street”, public lighting activated on demand, is of interest to more and more municipalities

Thanks to an application and a geolocation system, residents can decide to turn on the streetlights at night, for 15 minutes. We went to Normandy in the pioneering city of this light revolution.

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In terms of public lighting, Pont-de-l’Arche (Eure), in Normandy, is a pioneering city. The town of 4,200 inhabitants has a total of 900 light points. It is an important part of the municipal investment. So, six years ago, she revolutionized the operating system by adapting the lighting of the streetlights to the movements of the population.

The man who allowed the switch is called Olivier Bozzetto. This resident of Pont-de-l’Arche, an engineer by trade, designed a cheap system which allows the lighting to be activated at night only when someone passes by. The box, placed in the electrical cabinets, starts at 11 p.m. when the lighting is switched off.

It’s the marriage of the environment and the comfort of travel, he explains: “It’s not all or nothing. Once you’re in the dark, you can still turn it on again. It really is an alternative.”

“We make pure savings, but there is no longer any service for the inhabitants and the inhabitants remain actors in their city.”

Olivier Bozzetto, engineer and resident of Pont-de-l’Arche

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For this on-demand lighting principle to work, you must register on the dedicated site or application, I light up my street, and activate the geolocation of the phone when approaching a street plunged into darkness. The electrical cabinet locates your phone and activates several streetlights in your area for 15 minutes.

More than 8,000 users have already registered with Pont-de-l’Arche. “I use it from time to time but it doesn’t necessarily light up everywhere”, testifies a resident. Only five municipalities are equipped with this system, but around a hundred have inquired over the past six months.

The mayor of Pont-de-l’Arche, Richard Jacquet, sees only advantages: “It’s no longer a subject of debate. What’s interesting is that it wasn’t used as a gimmick. It’s a substantial saving: between 10,000 and 12,000 euros in savings every the years on public lighting. And then benefits for species with a barn owl which came to nest in the heart of the city last summer. It’s a good sign for all that is called the black frame and all aspects of biodiversity”.