MEMPHIS, Tenn. – – Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland is moving forward with his plan to put brighter LED bulbs in every street light across the city. WREG first told you about the initiative when the mayor announced it during his State of the City address Thursday.
“No longer will criminals have safe harbor to operate under the cover of darkness and prey on our citizens,” Mayor Strickland said.
He’s preparing to solicit bids from various companies to figure out how much it’ll cost to upgrade the roughly 84,000 street lights in the city. He’s also considering adding lights in some areas.
“Sometimes, I’ll drive in parts of this town that are just really dark,” Strickland said, “I think there’ll be a lot of interest in this.”
Larry Strickland is a homeowner who’s all for this idea. He lives in Frayser near Edenburg and St. Elmo where there was a deadly shooting Saturday night. It’s an area with dim lighting.
“We do worry a little bit,” Larry Strickland said.
He says there’s been an issue with car break-ins and believes brighter bulbs will deter the bad guys.
“The more light you have it’s gonna try to make them go somewhere else,” Larry Strickland said.
On top of being brighter, the mayor says LED bulbs are more durable.
“Over a long period of time LED will actually save money,” Mayor Strickland said.
His goal is to have every street light upgraded over the next two and a half years.
“Other cities have done it that quickly,” he said.
He plans to officially start accepting bids in the coming weeks.
