Will Brussels continue to shine at night? In view of the soaring energy prices, citizens are proposing to turn off public lighting in order to save money. Via the orange button Alert us, some express themselves. “JI am convinced that we must go further to save moneys at the scale of the country by removing all lighting audience. We are one of the most enlightened countries in the world. Pwhy not turn everything off lighting nocturne ?”, Nicole wonders.
To reduce our energy bills, should municipalities be plunged into darkness? This lighting holds the full attention of Philippe Close, mayor of Brussels. “Everything is under consideration today. What we have to find is the balance between the safety of our inhabitants and our neighborhoods”, he explains.
84,000 light points in Brussels
Today, 84,000 light points illuminate the capital. A way to reassure citizens when night falls and visibility weakens. The mayor is fully aware of their impact on the budget. But according to him, it is essential for the safety of citizens.
“If everything were to be in the dark, it’s not only the insecurity but also the atmosphere that we give, this very anxiety-provoking side. When the electricity in a street breaks down, there are dozens of emails coming to my house, phone calls. Cutting off all the lights in a city would be at the expense of the atmosphere of that city and it’s not a good idea”, argues the mayor.
The 84,000 light points represent 1% of the energy consumption of the Brussels Region. “77% of this lighting is low energy consumption and almost half can be reduced. We will reduce the bill by reducing this park but we will ensure safety by maintaining it anyway”, says Philippe Close. Before concluding : “To completely remove public lighting is however not realistic and it is not healthy for the inhabitants either”.
Lighting, the main expense of municipalities
Public lighting is the main source of electricity consumption for municipalities. “The modernization by LEDs is in progress. The savings that were to be generated by the reduction in LED consumption are completely eaten up by the increase in the price of electricity”explains Marianne Duquesne, expert adviser to the Union of towns and municipalities of Wallonia.
In Wallonia, at the current price, the budget is estimated at 85 million euros. An amount that several entities want to reduce. But it is important to take into account several technical aspects.
“Public lighting is controlled by cabins which serve several streets or a district. We can order the extinction of public lighting for a cabin but we will not be able to choose to maintain the lighting of the pedestrian crossing in a street and to cut off the rest of the street“, recalls Marianne Duquesne.
Even if we recover only 20%, that’s 17 million euros
Walloon municipalities are thus thinking regarding cutting off public lighting at a certain time of the night “in neighborhoods where there is not a significant nightlife“. “When we talk regarding 85 million euros for all the municipalities, even if we recover only 20%, that’s 17 million euros”, says the adviser.
A popular consultation in Viroinval
To Viroinval (in the province of Namur), the concern is such that a popular consultation has been launched. 5 years ago, the municipality installed LED lights. Its energy bill has thus been halved and 86 tons of CO2 have been saved. In view of these first positive results, the mayor of Viroinval wants to go further.
Via a survey, residents were asked regarding their desire to keep or remove street lighting. “We have to find the right balance between waiting for people who want to go and see the night sky once more. And those who are afraid of having to get up during the night and not see any lighting”explains Mayor Baudouin Schellen.
83% of respondents in favor of extinction
200 responses were thus collected by this municipality of 5,700 inhabitants. 83% of respondents say they are in favor of switching off the lighting between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m. The point must now pass to the municipal council. If the measure is adopted, this would further reduce the town’s energy bill by half.
According to the mayor Baudouin Schellen, however, it seems difficult to envisage completely removing the lighting. “I think it will always be necessary to keep points of light. In France, several thousand villages are already doing it, but I think that people are not yet ready for it. In a rural area like ours, you can even take a step in this direction if a municipal college decides it and if the citizens agree”, believes the mayor. No legal provision obliges a municipality to maintain public lighting on its roads.
It should be noted that, for its part, Wallonia has opted for the extinction of its motorways from September 19. Concretely, the extinction of the lights, between 10:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m., concerns the central berm of the motorways, ie 20,000 light points already modernized. The lighting of the exchangers is not modified. The savings potential generated by this decision amounts to some 400,000 euros at energy prices in 2022 and might be much greater in 2023 according to the Walloon Minister of Energy and Infrastructure Philippe Henry. “Citizens expect public authorities to also make efforts to reduce their energy consumption. This is the implementation of an emergency measure taken by Wallonia”he points out.
