To: Mike Tooley, Director - MDT, Pat Wise, Deputy Director - MDT, Paul Grant, Public Involvement Coordinator - MDT, Name, Title or Position (optional), Dwane Kailey, Administrator, Hwys. & Engineering Div. - MDT, John Swartz, Administrator, ...
Save energy when lighting highway through Red Lodge, MT
Please install LED lighting during improvements to Red Lodge's Highway 212.
Why is this important?
During the summer of 2012, Caltrans began a 24-month program to Retrofit 67,000 lights with LEDs (LIght Emitting Diodes) in the California state highway and other roadway systems. So far Montana’s Department of Transportation (MDT) is not following suit.
Its plans for the Highway 212 improvement call for high pressure sodium (HPS) lighting. Every old-technology light installed now will waste energy for 10-40 years in the future. If MDT saddles 212 with old technology, it will cost Red Lodge area citizens more than it should to reimburse NorthWestern Energy for electricity used and for lighting maintenance costs.
Some LEDs are better than others. Recent improvements in LED light levels mean that with the right luminaire fewer 40-foot poles would be required to adequately illuminate highway 212. Fewer poles means a reduction in that component of project costs, offsetting some of the higher costs necessary to specify use of LED luminaires rather than HPS lighting. At last check MDT had not authorized a redesign of lighting for the 212 project to take advantage of this technological advance.
A preliminary lighting analysis done on Hwy. 212 in the fall of 2011 indicated that for pole spacing on segment 2 one could use 13 poles housing LEDs for every 16 poles housing HPS. One could use 8 poles housing LEDs for every 9 poles housing HPS on segment 3. This assumed a 48 watt reduction in power required for the newer bulbs to achieve a 30% or better saving.
These numbers will have changed with more recent technology improvements. For example, on San Francisco’s Dumbarton Bridge a 183 watt LED replaced a 400 watt HPS for a 60% energy savings. In addition, Caltrans is counting on 12 to 15 years more life (and thus smaller maintenance costs) from their LEDs.
That’s why we are asking MDT: “Please install LED lighting during improvements to Red Lodge's Highway 212.” Please join our petition.
Jay Mennenga
Deborah Muth
Paulette Richter
Clare H. Whitcomb
Russ Doty
Its plans for the Highway 212 improvement call for high pressure sodium (HPS) lighting. Every old-technology light installed now will waste energy for 10-40 years in the future. If MDT saddles 212 with old technology, it will cost Red Lodge area citizens more than it should to reimburse NorthWestern Energy for electricity used and for lighting maintenance costs.
Some LEDs are better than others. Recent improvements in LED light levels mean that with the right luminaire fewer 40-foot poles would be required to adequately illuminate highway 212. Fewer poles means a reduction in that component of project costs, offsetting some of the higher costs necessary to specify use of LED luminaires rather than HPS lighting. At last check MDT had not authorized a redesign of lighting for the 212 project to take advantage of this technological advance.
A preliminary lighting analysis done on Hwy. 212 in the fall of 2011 indicated that for pole spacing on segment 2 one could use 13 poles housing LEDs for every 16 poles housing HPS. One could use 8 poles housing LEDs for every 9 poles housing HPS on segment 3. This assumed a 48 watt reduction in power required for the newer bulbs to achieve a 30% or better saving.
These numbers will have changed with more recent technology improvements. For example, on San Francisco’s Dumbarton Bridge a 183 watt LED replaced a 400 watt HPS for a 60% energy savings. In addition, Caltrans is counting on 12 to 15 years more life (and thus smaller maintenance costs) from their LEDs.
That’s why we are asking MDT: “Please install LED lighting during improvements to Red Lodge's Highway 212.” Please join our petition.
Jay Mennenga
Deborah Muth
Paulette Richter
Clare H. Whitcomb
Russ Doty