On Texel, no less than 2700 lamppost luminaires need to be replaced after just 7 years. The coating on the luminaires is very poor and probably not resistant to the salty sea air on the island. There is a chance that they will fail and then road safety will be at stake. Texel had replaced all public lighting with sustainable LED lighting in 2015, making it the first municipality in the Netherlands.
The contractor will replace the 2700 luminaires from the beginning of next year. A considerable job, which will take months. The municipality had not expected that they would have to be replaced so quickly. “Unfortunately, this means that not all broken lanterns can be repaired until the work starts. We ask for your understanding for this,” said responsible alderman Cees Hooijschuur.
Corrosion
The lampposts are located in residential areas and along main roads and have problems with the coating, which causes corrosion. As a result, the lighting fails and there are defects in the construction of the fixture and the glass plate. The luminaires will be renewed and the control of the public lighting will also be replaced. As a result, the municipality can control the lighting remotely and malfunctions are visible sooner.
A few years ago, the municipality led the way by providing the entire island with new sustainable lighting. LED lighting was installed and the lanterns were dimmed or removed at a number of locations. This saved no less than two thirds of the energy consumption. The energy that is still needed is generated by floating solar panels that are located at the sewage treatment plant on the Pontweg.
At first, the people of Texel had to get used to the new system. Many complaints came in particular from the outlying area. It was too dark and cyclists can’t see anything. All lanterns in the outlying area were removed and not replaced. The municipality does this consciously, because it is in favor of nocturnal darkness. The stars are therefore more visible on Texel than in other areas in the Netherlands. The lights also go out at one o’clock at night in the centres.