BETTER LIGHTING

Dominion, Volume 17, Issue 287, 21 August 1923, Page 5

BETTER LIGHTING

NEW SCHEME FOR' MIRAMAR LAST OF THE GAS LAMPS It was announced at the last meeting of the City Council that a scheme for improving the street lighting of Miramar had been drawn up and approved, which would not only mean better lighting but further economy. “At present the street lighting of Miramar consists of 23 gas lamps, 84 electric lamps, and 30 tramway track lamps, and the annual cost to the district is £591105.,” states the lighting superintendent (Mr. G. Lauchlan) in a report. “As this district has made considerable development in recent years, there have been repeated demands for street lighting, more particularly on Miramar flat. Unfortunately owing to the demands on our power plant, the matter has been postponed on the understanding that a comprehensive scheme of street lighting would be brought down. As it was considered advisable to do away with gas lamps if possible and substitute them with electric lamps, arrange incuts have been made with the Gas Company for the cancellation of its contract. . . • The total number of lamps which it is proposed to erect is 83, and the cost of erecting same is £BlB. Of this amount the sum of £2OO may be charged to private lighting development, leaving the cost of the scheme at £6lB. “The cost of maintenance will be £657 10s., an increase of £66 over the present inadequate service. In this it will be noted that there is a saying of £46 per annum through cancelling the Gas Company’s contract, and, further, that the cost of 50 c-p. street lamps is taken at £2 10s., as against the £3 per annum previously charged. The amount saved in these two items is £B4 per annum “All existing gas lamps are being replaced with electric lamps in approximately the same situations, with the exception of two lamps outside the Town Hall, in which case' I recommend the erection of one lamp on the opposite side of the road for street lighting- purposes, and also that a lamp be erected on the Town Hall building, to be lighted only when the hall is in use. “The present lights on the wharves at Seatoun and Karaka Bay are connected with the street lighting system, but are paid for by the Harbour Board.” Highway Track Lights, When in America recently Mr. M. Cable (tramways manager and engineer) was struck by the efficiency of certain highway lighting units seen at Boston, and at intervals right across the continent. These were Novalux highway lighting units, made by the General Electric Company, of Schenectady, New York, works which Mr. Cable visited. These units consist of two 300 c.p. lights, projecting from the trunk in opposite directions, each lamp having three reflectors (white), one inside the other, an opening being left in the reflectors so that the roadway right opposite the lamp shall not show a dark patch. The lamps are erected on poles at a height of 24 feet or 25 feet from the ground, and the lamps, which look either way along the track, are usually erected at intervals of 400 to 500 feet. Five of these Novalux units have been erected along the tramway track on Broadway, between the Miramar junction and the Seatoun tunnel, and though erected 600 to 700 feet apart, the flood of light along the road is surprising, and will at once remove a reproach of poor street lighting in that locality. What is claimed for the new lighting lamps (which are not intended for mid-city use) is that they ensure safety, minimise eye-strain, les. sen the glare -of approaching headlights, and give high efficiency at a low cost. It is the intention of Mr. Cable to extend the use of such lamps in localities© which justify their use.