About Light it
What's happening and why
Balfour Beatty Infrastructure Services, in partnership with South Tyneside Council, will carry out the work as part of a £63 million contract to improve lighting.
Balfour Beatty Infrastructure Services are responsible for providing and maintaining street lighting and highway signs for the next 25 years.
During the first five years 80% of the lighting columns (that's about 24,000) and around 8,000 signs will be replaced.
A further 5,000 columns will also be installed in back lanes and unlit paths throughout the borough.
The work will involve the installation of new lighting columns and the removal of the old columns once the new columns are working. Balfour Beatty Infrastructure Services will try to keep disruption and inconvenience to a minimum.
The new street lighting layout will be designed to current standards and the latest technology will be used so that the lighting levels needed are achieved. Energy consumption will be maintained at the lowest possible level.
Maintaining the new lighting
As well as installing new lighting in the borough, we need to make sure that it is maintained.
We will do this with planned maintenance, which includes electrical testing, structural inspections, bulk lamp replacements and cleaning.
We will also maintain the new lighting by responding to faults reported by the public and the night patrols that will be carried out.
To report a fault, please see report a street lighting defect online. We value your help in keeping South Tyneside illuminated.
Our service commitments
Balfour Beatty Infrastructure Services have made the following customer service commitments:
- Responding to all enquiries within five working days of receipt
- Showing courtesy to our customers
- Ensuring enquires will be dealt with by a member of the customer care team
Benefits to you
We hope that most of the work will be carried out in the next five years. It will benefit you by:
- Reducing crime and the fear of crime
- Helping to reduce road traffic accidents
- Making public transport safer and more accessible
- Making activities such as walking and cycling safer and more accessible
- Creating a safer and more pleasant evening environment
