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Drivers left in the dark under council saving initiatives

One in three (36%) of the UKs six million street lights are switched off or dimmed at night, putting drivers at potentially more risk of having an accident.

streetlight

36% of the UK’s six million street lights are switched off or dimmed at night.

The Freedom of Information data, obtained by Confused.com, also shows that Britains roads are set to be plunged even further into darkness, with more than half of the 180 councils surveyed planning future dimming or switch off regimes.

This is despite the fact that more than eight in 10 (84%) drivers travelling on dimmed or unlit streets think the visibility of the road is compromised when the lights are switched off. And just over a quarter (77%) say road visibility is compromised by dimmed conditions.

Meanwhile, almost two-fifths (38%) think unlit or dimmed streets make driving more dangerous. Some fear they will hit something due to poorer visibility, with some even saying they felt vulnerable when driving on darkened roads in case they break down. In fact, more than a third (39%) will go as far as to avoid driving in areas that are in complete darkness or dimly lit.

In response Edmund King, AA president, said there is growing evidence that cost-savings from councils turning off street lights are being paid for with lives, and added that there have been 11 cases of deaths since 2009 where the coroner has ruled that lack of street lighting was a significant contributory factor.

He commented: With many more councils switching off their street lights for at least part of the night, the streetlight blackout tragedy will just get worse as more and more roads are turned into potential death-traps.

Our advice to drivers is to use full beam headlights where councils have imposed a blackout, even in residential areas, except where they may dazzle other drivers, riders and pedestrians.

We also advocate that local authorities consider using decent low energy lighting on the streets most at risk rather than having a full blackout. However, we have had some complaints that if the low-energy lighting is too dim it heralds a return to Dickensian Britain.

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Natalie Middleton

Natalie has worked as a fleet journalist for over 20 years, previously as assistant editor on the former Company Car magazine before joining Fleet World in 2006. Prior to this, she worked on a range of B2B titles, including Insurance Age and Insurance Day.