Local authorities up and down the country have embraced the need to improve their levels of energy efficiency and reduce carbon emissions over recent years, but new data from the AA has highlighted this move towards a greener future may have come at a price.

According to official statistics from the motoring organisation, the number of night-time accidents across the UK has reduced by 15.6 per cent over the last five years and this is therefore a development that is to be celebrated.

However, a significant difference has been revealed between those areas where street lighting has been switched off for a portion of the night and those that have not yet followed this practice.

Overall, between 2007 and 2012 a 19.6 per cent reduction in accident rates was recorded in areas where street lighting remained on throughout the night. However, in locations where lighting was switched off for specific periods to save energy this reduction was only shown to be 8.8 per cent.

Road safety should always be a top priority for councils and all road users and therefore this “creeping trend” of a difference in accident numbers between illuminated and unlit areas is something all drivers and businesses need to be aware of.

AA president Edmund King commented: “Firstly and fundamentally, roads that are safe when lit can become unsafe with the lights switched off, but that is only shown when drivers, cyclists, bikers and pedestrians start to get hurt and killed.

“Secondly, with an extra casualty here and there, it is difficult to spot a creeping overall trend that might suggest something is dangerously wrong with a blackout.

“The AA’s analysis of reported accidents since 2007 shows that the faster the road and the worse the weather, the much higher the threat of accidents on urban roads that were previously lit through the night.”

He added that the importance of adequate road lighting should not be underestimated, as proper illumination enables all road users to identify hazards and this is therefore an issue which needs to be raised.

Meanwhile, the attitudes of motorists themselves to the practice of turning off lighting overnight to save energy have also been highlighted in the latest AA-Populus report.

When asked if individuals believe this is a good idea to help to cut costs and reduce CO2 emissions, the majority of respondents (54 per cent) agreed that it was.

However, 78 per cent of respondents also stated they believe that local residents should always be consulted before plans to introduce lighting blackouts in their area, enabling the community to fully debate the merits of such a move in an open and honest manner.

Moreover, 59 per cent also felt that any financial savings that councils make through a move to reduced levels of illumination in the evening should be funnelled back into benefiting the local community.

It is a tricky situation that local authorities therefore now find themselves in, as pressure to save on costs and reduce emissions is continuing to grow, but at the same time, road safety and the safety of all members of a community need to be at the forefront of thinking behind any such plans.

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Posted by Clare Lafferty, Account Manager, The Fuelcard People.