STREET LIGHTING

Southland Times, Issue 21728, 14 June 1932, Page 5

STREET LIGHTING

EXTENSION OF HOURS SOUGHT. LOCAL RESIDENT’S REQUEST. That he felt sure an extension of the hours of street lighting in Invercargill would be an action which would meet with the approval of the majority of ratepayers, was a statement made to a Times reporter yesterday by a local business man. Admittedly the present was a time of financial stress, he said, but he was convinced that ratepayers would not begrudge the few extra pence a year to maintain the street lighting system he was advocating. “How is it,” he asked, “that in northern towns —Oamaru, for instance—with much smaller populations than Invercargill the street lights are continued throughout the night and down here they are extinguished at midnight? If this is done as an economy measure then I maintain it is ill-advised because of the inconvenience occasioned local residents who happen to be abroad after twelve o’clock. “I read with interest the account in this morning’s paper of the would-be attack made on a local resident in Gala street the other night,’’ continued the speaker. “That is what has caused me to bring this matter up because it is quite apparent that the attempt was prompted by the darkness of the night unrelieved by the light of street lamps. However, it is not for the purpose of preventing assault and robbery that I am advocating an extension of the hours because, fortunately, there have been few such cases locally. It is more for the convenience of the ratepayers generally who, as quite often happens, are on the streets after midnight. I, for one, am occasionally out late and many is the time I have splashed into puddles or stumbled over holes in the footpaths as I have groped my way home in the dark.

“I must say,” the speaker went on, “that I do not approve of the practice locally of practically cutting out all the street lights on a moonlight night for, mon often than not, the moon chooses to retire behind the clouds on that particular occasion and utter darkness prevails.

“Let it be understood that I am speaking in no carping spirit,” he concluded. “I feel sure, however, that an extension of the hours would be in the best interests of the ratepayers. I am one of them and am quite prepared to pay a little extra to secure this convenience.”