Chennai
To reduce power consumption and promote environmentally friendly urban lighting, the Coimbatore City Corporation has started installing completely solar energy -operated motion sensor street lights. These lights equipped with solar panels are aimed at reducing the dependence on electricity boards by reducing carbon and greenhouse gas emissions. Under a pilot project, 122 motion sensor street lights have been installed at five places, and plans to identify places for an additional 100 units. Officials believe that expanding this initiative may lead to a significant decrease in the need for new electricity connections, including expensive deposits, line charges and monthly bills.
A senior corporation official said that installing regular street lights is often a cumbersome and expensive process, while solar -powered motion sensor models require only a lump sum investment.
The corporation has chosen auto-dimensing technology, where the lights work on 50 percent of the glow and switch to the entire glow when the speed is detected in the range of four meters of the pole. Other models available in the market include full blackout variants or only speeding models.
This system has the facility to automatically turn off using speed or sensor from evening to morning. Diming capacity not only saves energy but also increases the life of the battery. Each unit is extremely durable with a two -year warranty, although officials say solar panels have to be cleaned every two months and the battery has to be changed every three to five years depending on use.
Corporation Commissioner M. Shivguru Prabhakaran admitted that dust accumulating on panels remains a challenge.
Currently, there is no centralized monitoring system for these lights. Future plans include installing motion sensor street lights at 42 overhead water tank locations in newly added municipal areas.
The manufacturer of Kerala claims that their models can detect the speed of 10 meters away, even animals, making them suitable for various environments. He said that commercial establishments, apartment complex and educational institutions are fast adopting sensor-based street lighting for cost and energy efficiency.
If the pilot project was successful, the corporation hopes that this technology will become an important part of the city’s public lighting strategy, which will contribute to both environmental stability and operational savings.
