The city of Sète is trying to reduce its energy consumption with an intelligent public lighting system

New street lights with motion detectors have been installed around the Saint-Clair. Midi Libre – DR

A new experiment to reduce the consumption of public lighting is being launched by the City of Sète. Brand new street lights have been installed around the Saint-Clair mountain, with low brightness during off-peak hours and a motion detector, to increase the light when residents pass by. 

The City of Sète has been trying a completely new ecological method, by reducing public lighting around Mont Saint-Clair, since mid-December.

Reduced lighting between 10:30 p.m. and 5 a.m.

This experiment is rather simple. On the designated streets, the street lights are only lit at 10% of their capacity, between 10:30 p.m. and 5 a.m. To ensure the safety of residents who walk along these streets and dead ends, sensors have been installed on each street light. They can detect a presence, whether it is an individual or a car, and reactivate normal light intensity. The streets concerned are: rue d’Auvergne, chemin du Belbezet, impasse du Roitelet, chemin du Rouquier, chemin des Pèlerins, chemin de la Sauge, impasse du Gecko, impasse du Fenouil, rue Ferdinand-Theule, passage lycée Joliot-Curie and rue René-Cassin.

59 street lights affected

In total, 59 street lights were affected, in about ten streets, dead ends and paths. This experiment needs to be carried out in different places, more or less busy, in order to have broad results. This initiative would make it possible to achieve real energy savings and satisfy residents, who complained about the street lights being too bright at night.

54.7% energy savings

Since 2013, the City of Sète specifies that it has achieved 54.7% of these energy savings. This is notably due to the PPP (public-private partnership) contract for the renovation of public lighting, in force since 2013 and still valid until 2033. These projects aim to reduce the environmental impact of public lighting, through less polluting eco-designs, in particular LED lighting. Energy consumption by public lighting has been a subject for many municipalities in recent years. The City of Frontignan has also launched a massive change of lighting point in its municipality.