Britain Shuts Off 750,000 Streetlights With No Impact On Crime Or Crashes

Flash Modin writes: English cities are hard up for cash as the national government dolls out cuts. And in response, the country's councils — local governing bodies — have slashed costs by turning off an estimated 750,000 streetlights. Fans of the night sky and reduced energy usage are happy, but the move has also sparked a national debate. The Automobile Association claims six people have died as a direct result of dimming the lights. But a new study released Wednesday looked at 14 years of data from 63 local authorities across England and Wales and found that residents' chances of being attacked, robbed, or struck by a car were no worse on the darker streets.

Comments

Re:Crooks are afraid of the dark, too

[Culture20]

Unless properly placed, lights create darker shadows (relative to the light) that are easier to hide in. Most street lamps are placed without consideration to existing structures, and new structures don't cause existing street lamps to be altered.

Math problem

[William Baric]

Light use electricity. Producing electricity creates pollution. Pollution is responsible for a lot of death. Six people died because of turning off some lights. How many did not die because of reduced pollution?