When you think of Las Vegas, you probably imagine the famous neon-glowing sign and streets with casino after casino lit up and bursting with activity well into the night. Every one of those lightbulbs represents an electric bill, and they add up fast.
The city of Las Vegas currently pays more than a million dollars per year on streetlights alone, but a money-saving solution is currently in the works. The city is working toward lowering the electric bill by testing solar- and pedestrian-powered streetlights developed by New York-based clean tech startup EnGoPLANET. The installation, announced in March, will be the first ever in the world to combine kinetic and solar energy in street lighting technology. The lights are zero emission, off the grid, and could provide the city with a wide variety of benefits.
The streetlights are festooned with a variety of other technological features, such as an array of sensors can track things like atmospheric and traffic conditions and upload data into the cloud, providing a bounty of information to city planners. EnGoPLANET’s design also allows for the streetlights to become something of a social hub. They have comfortable seating and a small surface that lets pedestrians charge their electronic devices wirelessly or via USB ports while they rest and use the provided WiFi.
Four streetlights will be installed in Vegas’ Arts District’s Boulder Plaza where they will be monitored and tested. The primary concern for EnGoPLANET is seeing if the batteries can survive the blistering heat of a Vegas summer. If the launch is a success, EnGoPLANET could provide an ideal solution to bringing much needed light to the off-the-grid trails throughout Las Vegas Valley and beyond.
PHOTO: COURTESY OF ENGOPLANET
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