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Turning off street lights 'will put drivers at risk'
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Written by Emmeline Saunders, 08/09/10
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Caravan insurance customers could be exposed to a higher risk of traffic accidents if street lighting is turned off to save money, the AA has warned.
The study by the organisation draws a link between driving at night and an increased number of accidents, as while only a quarter of travel by road users is between the hours of 19:00 and 08:00, some 40 per cent of all fatal and serious injuries occur within this time frame.
At a time when local authorities across the country are slashing their road safety budgets, the AA is calling for an improvement in street lighting.
AA president Edmund King commented: "Lighting can improve safety for drivers, riders and pedestrians and deter street crime. The public are in favour of street lighting as a way of improving road safety."
He pointed out that caravan insurance policyholders and other road users, such as cyclists and pedestrians, are more at risk on unlit streets.
Motorways should also be well lit at night, the AA said, as low illumination is a "major contributory factor in the night-time fatality rate".
According to the BBC, Britain's 7.5 million street lights cost around £500 million a year to maintain.
Councils in Swansea, Essex, Devon and Buckinghamshire have already set out plans to turn off some of their street lights at night.
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