We are happy to be able to give an update on the installation of new lights along the L.A. River Bike Path. As many of you probably already know, this segment has been hit hard by copper wire thieves (whose actions have left it, and the many folks who use it, stranded in the dark). The LADOT Bikeways team has been working with the City’s Bureau of Street Lighting to replace these dormant lights along the L.A. River Bike Path. The first of those replacements have very recently been installed.
New solar LED lighting fixture!
A Complete Fix
The bike path segment from Riverside Drive (at Zoo Drive) to Fletcher Drive – approximately 4.6 miles in length – will be getting new LED (Light-Emitting Diode) street lamps, 80 percent of which will be solar powered. The path’s solar lights will not rely on copper wiring for their power supply, providing the double benefit of deterring thieves and being environmentally friendly.
One of the many new solar LED fixtures currently being installed. (The older fixtures can be seen in the background.)
Green Street Light Program
The L.A. River Bike Path’s new LED street lights further the goals set by the Mayor’s “Green Street Light Program.” The program represents a partnership between the Mayor’s Office and the Clinton Climate Initiative. The program calls for the City to replace 140,000 traditional street lights with environmentally friendly LED lights. The LED’s are estimated to provide a 40 percent energy savings, reduce maintenance and energy costs, and reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 40,500 tons annually – the equivalent of taking 6,700 cars off the road. The program is also expected to save the City $10 million dollars annually.
Perhaps most importantly, these new lights will make the L.A. River Bike Path a safer, more enjoyable place to ride a bike – so go out there and enjoy!
Charging up on a beautiful spring day - Go solar!
No more worrying about a vulnerable electrical box!
New solar LED lights just north of Fletcher Drive
What do these fixtures cost each? And then how much of that is for the solar panel and how much is for the lamp?
And then I wonder what the old sodium vapor lamps cost.
The total cost of the old lamps is the cost of the bulb plus the cost of the copper wiring stolen plus the labor to rewire the lamp after the wire is stolen, plus the labor and parts to secure the electrical box (if it can be done), plus the electricity to run the lamps. In addition, the new wiring would almost certainly be stolen again, incurring more cost.
The cost of the new lamps is lamp + installation labor.
[...] New Solar Powered LED Lights for River Path (LADOT Bike Blog) [...]
So, uh, what’s going to keep the copper-wire thieves from becoming solar-powered-LED-light thieves?
Copper wiring is easy to sell. Stolen pole mounted solar LED lights have a fairly limited market. Vandalism is significantly more likely, but these lights should be more resistant to vandalism as well; if you have ever been on the river path you’ve probably seen the old lights broken by people throwing rocks or such at them.
I’m not an expert on this subject, but I would hazard a guess that LEDs are not nearly as valuable as raw copper at this point in time. Copper supplies are rapidly becoming constrained (much faster than crude oil) and it’s a necessary component of an awful lot of consumer-oriented, high-tech things.
If these lighting fixtures function as individual units and don’t need to be connected to each other with hundreds of feet of wiring (which seems to be the case), they’re not going to be such a target for savvy thieves, although vandalism could still be a problem.
Any chance that we can get the LADOT to change its policy of only showing photos of empty bike facilities?
I second that motion!
Awesome! My dad is going to be so happy, since he’s a regular River path rider! This was a great thing! Great use of Stimulus $.
[...] of Long Beach’s protected bike lanes. LADOT Bike Blog looks forward to Bike Week. New lights come to the L.A. River Bike Path. Metro bike maps are making their appearance at local train stations. An Indian cyclist passes [...]
Wow, the city really is moving into the 21st century, plus it will save tax dollars. It seems the city is become more environmentally conscience…these new lighting system will save on electricity costs, save on electric transformers and cable costs. Also, the LED’s are much brighter then those regular street lights, I can see the road better. Is the city going to put them on all the bike friendly streets and paths?
Never really thought of that. Placing proper lighting along the bike friendly streets would provide a huge boost to all three forms of safety
Physical: Street will be visible at night, able to avoid obstacles, cars
Subjective: Facility will feel safer
Social: Less likely to have someone run up and take your bike or be mugged.
As bike friendly streets will be an integral part of the bike network bikerdude raises an excellent point– we need this kind of lighting on all bike facilities but perhaps most importantly on the paths and BFS as they are routes commonly ‘left in the dark’.
We tend to overlook lighting, but this is something included in all the most bike friendly cities, especially in the Netherlands from what I’ve seen.
Yay for solar powered LED lights!
does anyone know what has to be done to get these solar lights added to LA other bike paths? ( Ballona creek?)
wow its great achievement these lights make our environment friendly and safe for driving
thanks
Bike Lighting and the Seasoned Cyclist
i’VE not yet ridden under these but prioor led’s havehbeen very hostile to upright riding from the glare.
I love led’s, it’s the fixture, and there proper use, so I note that led’s can use aluminum wire instead of copper, without having to put wider etc. conduit in, and that batteries cost a lot compared to aluminum.
PV will limit brightness or hours of operation. PV of course saves wiring costs in entirely new installations, but if theft has occured the infrastrucutre for wiiring is already there.
This is a city, this path is hard to escape from, i believe better alarms could best curtail the theft problem.
(with ultrarapid respond and video oand barely anthing being spent nto havehthat)
so i praise tha tsome o fthe led’s willb e line powered. I hopeall are not justloved by helmet road sprinters. I also have avoidedt the river nearer the coast because the path is so mangled not just because you can’t see how much so inthedark. Led’s shouldbea total game changer though- they should be put down onthe path surface,landing strip style, pv powered, hundreds per mile. That preservess night visiion and rfeallly rocks. The market is just beginning. Ultimately I wouldexpect continous stripes perhaps eve nwide to bea affordable. A path that glows all night long shows bumps, lumps, deadly as stumps sharps.
head on colllisions on dark paths are avoided by having alit even virtual divider i say.
Fabulous lamps! Nice work! Thanks for doing this blog. I absolutely love it!