Cairo to Fully Switch to LED Street Lamps

Cairo has launched a project aiming to save energy by changing the sodium light bulbs in street lamps to LED. This plan is expected to save 80% of the energy normally used with standard street lamps.

The initiative has already begun in Abdin and Al-Azbekiya. Streets like Sabri Abu Alam, Qasr El Nile, and Mohammed Farid Square in the Abdin district, along with the streets of Al Gomhoreya, Najib Al Rihani, Sulaiman Al Halabi, Emad Eddin are now using LED streetlights.

According to the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, LED streetlights offer higher efficiency and are long lasting which provides substantial energy and saves costs.

They also add that LED street lighting can also be adjusted to provide only the level of illumination needed at any given time, and can also offer a higher degree of control over the direction in which light is emitted. This makes it easier to reduce glare, light trespass (the spillover of light into areas where it’s not wanted), and uplight, which contributes to the phenomenon of “sky glow” that reduces the visibility of starts in the night sky.

The move is not only going to help in energy and cost savings, but also reduce light-pollution in Cairo.

Photo: @DowntownCairo