Traffic and Infrastructure
Arlington County has retrofitted more than half of its signalized traffic intersections with LED (light emitting diode) traffic lights which are brighter, last longer, and use 75% less energy than traditional traffic signals. Total energy used by streetlights and traffic signals was nearly 10% lower in 2010 than in 2000 – despite the addition of thousands of street lights and traffic signals during the past decade. These efficiency improvements will continue as we convert additional County-owned streetlights to LEDs.
In 2011, with the help of an American Recovery and Reinvestment Act Grant from the U.S. Department of Energy, Arlington was able to become one of the first communities in the nation to launch a large-scale conversion of its streetlights to more energy efficient light-emitting diode, or LEDs. The conversion, over time, will produce both significant savings in electricity costs for the County and environmental benefits. The County expects to replace about 40% of the streetlights it owns by Spring 2011 – nearly 1,800 lights. Depending on the availability of funding, the County plans to complete the conversion of all County-owned streetlights to LEDs within six years, installing 500 new street lights every year.
