Wem street lights may be dimmed to save cash

Members of Wem Town Council environment committee have discussed the possibility of converting its street lights to LED dimmers which it hopes could "dramatically reduce energy costs".

The lights would be reduced in brightness by 25 per cent from 8pm and a further 25 per cent at midnight before working at full capacity at 6am.

However the plans are still in the early stages.

Penny O'Hagan, clerk to Wem Town Council, said: "Nothing has been confirmed.

"There is quite a considerable amount of work to do before this gets discussed at full town council.

"We are quite a way off that yet.

"At the moment we are looking at financial arrangements. If we go for dimmable lights we need to work out what criteria to use. This is at a very early stage and we are a long way off."

In the minutes of the environment committee it said the committee decided that the council and clerk would discuss the costs and options. The clerk will also ask Shropshire Council street lighting managers on the proposed lighting specification and price for the work.

Last year a decision was made to switch off two-thirds of street lights in Shropshire overnight as part of cost-cutting and energy-saving measures. The switch-off was organised by Shropshire Council as part of a drive to save money.

Some 12,500 of the 18,500 street lights owned by the council now work under the new part-night lighting system.

The move was hoped to save the council £125,000 a year. Dangerous road junctions, areas covered by CCTV and sheltered housing were unaffected by the changes.

Also at the meeting of Wem Town Council's environment committee, councillors looked at ways to reduce dog fouling on the playing fields.

Members agreed a "harder-hitting" campaign was needed after humorous signs appeared to be making no impact. Instead, the council will now look at the development of a poster campaign which could incorporate a design from local children.

The committee will also buy biodegradable spray paint to alert people on the town's recreational ground of dog fouling.

Meanwhile, recommendations have been made by the committee to the town council to introduce charges for people using the public toilets. The move comes after Healthmatic, a counter monitoring the toilet usage, was used to analyse how many people are using the toilets.