ATLANTA — The city of Atlanta is taking a close look at replacing existing street lamps with new LED lamps.
Georgia Power is beginning the job but the city says it wants to see if those lights are going to be more efficient and cost effective.
Channel 2's Richard Elliot went to the Adair Park neighborhood where neighbors told him they like the new lights.
Tracy Jones has lived on Elbert Street in southwest Atlanta for eight years and she told Elliot that she noticed the changed almost immediately.
"I love it. I think they're good. It's better. It's got the street more lit up. We could see better," Jones said.
The city of Atlanta says Georgia Power is in the process of replacing some of the old pinkish orange sodium vapor streetlamps with new light emitting diode ones, or LED.
The city is taking a close look at how they operate.
They're very concerned that the new lights help promote public safety but they also want to see if they are more cost efficient than the old sodium vapor ones.
"The better lit the streets are, I think it's a safer community," neighbor Mike Ebner told Elliot.
Before the sun went down, Elliot caught up with Ebner as he raked his midtown Atlanta yard.
He noticed the change in streetlamps there, too.
He thinks the lights are brighter and chase away more shadows from darker corners.
"When the LED lights went in one night, it really was a big difference in regards to how much of the street it lit up and just the quality of light, you could really see the difference," Ebner said.
Jones told Elliot she never really liked those sodium vapor lamps and she's glad to see these new ones.
The city hasn't said if there is a timetable to replace the lights. They do want to see if they'll cost less money or at least the same as the old kind.
WSBTV
