Villagers say LEDs have left them in the dark

BBC A very dark street with a street light ahead on the left hand side. The right hand side of the road is dark.BBC
Residents in Milton say the light from the LEDs does not spread

Villagers have said new lighting has plunged so much of the area into darkness some of them are having to use torches at night.

Cambridgeshire County Council wants to upgrade all street lights in the county to light-emitting diodes (LEDs) in the next 18 months.

But residents in Milton, where the bulbs are currently being changed, have told the BBC areas directly under the lights are well lit but the light does not spread - leaving some areas in total darkness.

The council, which has been approached for comment, has previously said the new LEDs will "emit light in a more concentrated way directly towards the road" and will reduce light pollution.

James Windle, a bald man wearing a black and beige coat, stands underneath a lamp post in a street.
James Windle says the new lighting means he has to use a torch more often

Resident James Windle, who regularly runs around the village, said he was having to use a head torch more often.

"I've always used a hi-vis and headlamp.

"I've only had to use the headlamp outside areas of street lighting before, but I do now have to use it within street lighting areas."

He added he now needed to use a torch when he took out the the bins - to work out which colour was which.

Mr Windle said he believed people were now worried about using cut-through paths on his estate because they were now so dark.

A dark street with very few street lights
Residents say there are large very dark areas between the lights following the "upgrade"
The same street in day time. Houses and bare trees are visible on both sides of the road. A triangle playground sign is on a nearby street light.
The same street in the daytime

Fellow resident Amrita Roy walks from the bus stop to her home in the evening and normally uses one of the cut-throughs, which has a street light halfway down.

She said she felt "physically very threatened" when she could not see a man walking towards her until they were very close.

She said it meant she now took a longer route home.

A long path between a fence and a hedgerow.
Cut-through paths like this one are very dark now, say the villagers

Kevin Harding, who also lives in the village, said he supported the council using LED lighting but he felt the lights it had used were not adequate.

"It's not good from a security point of view or for vulnerable people. There's big black holes between the lamps.

"I think the people that selected this product need to come out here and take a look and maybe have a re-think."

A road junction with street lights and a bus stop. It's dark and a white car is on the road.
A part of the village that hasn't yet had LEDs installed is still well lit

In a statement issued last week, Cambridgeshire County Council said: "The LED streetlights emit light in a more concentrated way directly towards the road.

"This means that in a residential area, whilst the road is lit, other places such as verges and driveways, which were previously incidentally lit by the old street lights, will now likely appear darker.

"Ensuring that the new street lights do not significantly illuminate areas beyond the street itself will reduce light pollution and is one way that energy efficiency has been improved."

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