The City of Lackawanna has partnered with National Grid to convert 2,300 streetlights to LEDs, which will deliver long-term cost and energy savings. Compared to traditional high-pressure sodium streetlights, LEDs, or light-emitting diodes, are highly energy-efficient, last longer, improve visibility, and have lower maintenance costs. The changeover represents the largest such LED streetlight conversion completed by National Grid in Erie County. For Lackawanna’s conversion project, National Grid provided a $162,000 incentive, which represents 92 percent of the total project cost. As a result of the conversion, Lackawanna is projected to save approximately $25,000 annually in energy costs, resulting in a payback of less than one year on the estimated $9,000 net project cost after incentive.

National Grid regional director Ken Kujawa and Lackawanna Mayor Annette Iafallo display one of the new LED luminaires.

Lackawanna’s streetlights were retrofitted as part of National Grid’s Streetlight Conversion Program, which enables communities to switch from more costly high -pressure sodium lights. The program is open to the company’s upstate New York municipal and governmental streetlight customers with roadway-style fixtures and promotes the adoption of energy-efficient LED technology through the transition of company-owned streetlights.

“Thanks to National Grid’s Streetlight Conversion Program, the City of Lackawanna was able to cost-effectively modernize a large portion of our city’s streetlight infrastructure to a safer and more energy-efficient system,” said Lackawanna Mayor Annette Iafallo. “And best of all, this service upgrade was accomplished with minimal out-of-pocket cost to our city taxpayers due to the generous rebate associated with our participation in this conversion. I greatly appreciate the efforts of Lackawanna Public Works Commissioner Anthony DeSantis and our partners at National Grid, for delivering this important project to Lackawanna.”

“Visually, LEDs produce a distinctly whiter, brighter light compared to the yellow hue cast by traditional high-pressure sodium lights,” said National Grid Regional Director Ken Kujawa. “When working with us, municipalities often consider this difference when specifying which lights are to be converted, particularly in situations where LED and high -pressure sodium streetlights may be on the same street or in close proximity. This program is among the many ways we are working to deliver a clean energy future for our customers.”

LEDs have no filament, produce less heat, require no warmup period to reach full brightness, and make it easier for motorists and pedestrians to recognize objects. National Grid encourages customers considering LED streetlight conversion to seek additional information from knowledgeable lighting professionals to make fully informed decisions.

Since launching its LED Streetlight Conversion Program in 2018, National Grid has converted nearly 40,000 streetlight fixtures to cleaner, greener LEDs. In addition, National Grid has returned more than $2 million in energy efficiency incentives to qualified municipalities that participated in the company’s Streetlight Conversion program and completed the installation of their new LED lighting. All total, new LED fixtures have saved upstate New York municipalities more than 18,000 megawatt-hours, or the equivalent of average energy consumed annually by approximately 1,660 U.S. homes.

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