In the context of smart city construction and green energy transition, the cost management of street lighting systems has expanded from a single procurement expenditure to a comprehensive consideration of the entire life cycle. Whether it is a municipal road, industrial park or rural road lighting plan, decision makers need to clearly understand the dynamic relationship between initial investment, replacement cost, operational energy consumption, maintenance frequency and technology iteration cost. In this paper, we will combine specific cases and technology comparisons to build a full-dimensional cost model covering traditional lighting, LED upgrades, solar applications, and intelligent systems, providing a scientific basis for decision-making in projects of different sizes.
solar street light
Street light installation is a systematic work involving engineering design, material procurement and construction management, and its cost fluctuation is affected by geography, technical standards and project scale.
The height and material of the pole directly determines the base cost: 6-8 meter steel pole is suitable for residential areas, with a unit cost of about US$700-1200, and the hot-dip galvanized surface treatment can extend its life to 15-20 years; 10-15 meter aluminum alloy pole is commonly used in the main road, with a unit cost of US$1800-2900, which is lightweight and corrosion-resistant; and composite poles (e.g., glass-fiber-reinforced plastics) are used in special environments, with a higher unit cost of 2,500-3,500 yuan. Composite poles (e.g., fiberglass reinforced plastic) used in special environments are more costly, costing $2,500-$3,500 per pole, and are insulating and impact resistant.
The type of light source is the core of technology selection: high-pressure sodium light (HPS) initial cost is low (single 200-400 U.S. dollars), but the light effect of fast decay and low color rendering index, not suitable for commercial streets and other scenes; LED light source unit price of 400-1200 U.S. dollars / a light, the light effect of the high-pressure sodium light is more than twice the life expectancy of more than 50,000 hours, to support the adjustment of the color temperature in order to adapt to different scenes. The cost of accessories (cable, control box, embedded parts, etc.) accounts for 15%-20% of the total cost of materials.
800 U.S. dollars; geographical aspects, North America, labor costs account for 40% -50% of the total cost of installation (a single 10-meter LED street light labor costs up to 1,500-2,000 U.S. dollars), while Southeast Asia accounted for only 20% -30% (the same specifications of the cost of labor of about 600-900 U.S. dollars), and permafrost, coastal and other complex terrain requires additional processing costs (a single increase of 200-300 U.S. dollars), the project planning needs to be integrated with the territorial conditions, the project planning needs to be integrated with the territorial conditions. In addition, project planning needs to balance efficiency and cost with local conditions.
Transportation costs in remote areas can account for 20%-30% of the total cost, such as mountain roads need to be transported by mules and horses, an additional 300-500 U.S. dollars for a single light; the transformation of historic districts need to be customized vintage poles, the cost of additional 800-1500 U.S. dollars / light, and the need to coordinate the approval of cultural relics protection, extending the duration of the project by 15-30 days.
Case reference: A city main street installs 500 12-meter LED streetlights, with a material cost of $3,300 per light ($2,200 for pole + $800 for light source + $300 for fittings), $550 for labor and equipment, and $250 for transportation and other costs, for a total cost of $4,100 per light, and a total project investment of $2.05 million.
solar street lights
As LED technology becomes more widespread and upgrades to traditional street lights become the norm, replacement costs need to be evaluated at three levels: asset retirement, system compatibility, and technology migration.
Removal and disposal costs vary significantly depending on the type of fixture and the difficulty of the operation. The cost of removing a conventional 6-10 meter low mast light is about US$200-300 per light, which mainly includes manual dismantling and transportation to the stockpiling site, and an additional US$50-100 structural restoration fee if the light is embedded in a landscape structure. For high-pole lights above 15 meters, it is necessary to call for aerial trucks with arm span of 30 meters or more (daily rental of US$1,500-2,000), together with a professional lifting team, and the cost of dismantling a single light reaches US$500-800, and if it involves underground gas or cable pipelines, third-party testing is required for the construction of the lights, which will lengthen the construction period by 2-3 days, and the cost will increase by 10%-15%.
Environmental disposal, high-pressure sodium lights and other traditional lights contain mercury and other hazardous substances, a single light needs to be handed over to a professional hazardous waste treatment business, the disposal fee of 50-100 U.S. dollars, illegal disposal of a single light may face a fine of more than 2,000 U.S. dollars. However, the lead skins of old cables can be recycled (about US$1.2/kg, with a recycling value of US$30-50 for a single cable), and the aluminum poles (US$80-120/light) and optical lenses (US$20-30/light) of LED fixtures can be disassembled to offset some of the disposal costs and to achieve resource recycling.
When upgrading conventional streetlights to LEDs, transformers may need to be expanded or smart gateways deployed. Individual light controllers cost $150-250/light, and setting up a communications network (e.g., NB-IoT) requires a system-level investment of $50,000-$100,000/square kilometer. Replacing only the light source and control system using old poles can reduce the cost per light by $800-$1,200, or 30-40% of the cost of a new replacement.
10%-15% discount for bulk purchases of 500+ LED fixtures, reducing the cost per fixture from $1,200 to $1,020-$1,080. For example, replacing a high pressure sodium light with an LED would cost about $3,300/light for the entire process, while retrofitting an old pole would save 42%, or only $1,450 per light.
solar street light
Operating expenses can account for 40-60% of a street light’s lifecycle, and for projects that are more than 10 years old, the cumulative cost of energy consumption and maintenance can exceed the initial investment.
The energy consumption advantage of LED luminaires makes a significant cost difference in the long run. Take 250W high-pressure sodium light as an example, according to the daily operation of 12 hours of calculation, the annual energy consumption of about 1,095 degrees, according to the price of 0.15 U.S. dollars / unit of electricity, the annual cost of electricity amounted to 164 U.S. dollars; while the annual energy consumption of the 100W LED lights is only 438 degrees, the annual cost of electricity down to 66 U.S. dollars, a single light 10 years of cumulative savings of nearly 1,000 U.S. dollars in electricity costs. This difference in energy consumption is multiplied with the increase in the number of lights. 500 high-pressure sodium lights cost more than $82,000 for 10 years, while LED lights cost only $33,000, a difference of nearly $50,000.
The smart lighting system further enhances the energy savings: by deploying a midnight power-down mode (e.g., automatically adjusting from 100% brightness to 30%), energy consumption can be reduced by another 20%-30%. For example, for 500 LED streetlights, annual energy consumption dropped from 219,000 kWh (438 kWh/light × 500 lights) to 153,000-175,000 kWh with intelligent control, saving $15,000-$22,500 in annual electricity costs. This model not only reduces energy consumption, but also extends the life of the lights and lanterns – lower brightness can make the LED chip temperature drop by 10-15 ℃, light decay rate slowed down by 15-20%, indirectly reducing the frequency of maintenance, the formation of “energy saving + life extension” double benefit.
The maintenance cost of traditional light sources constitutes an important part of the whole life cycle expenditure of street lights, especially the high-pressure sodium light as a typical representative. The bulb of such lights needs to be replaced at an average of 5% per year, at a cost of $25 for a single bulb, the annual replacement cost of 500 streetlights reaches $625 (500 × 5% × $25); ballasts need to be replaced every 5 years, at a cost of $100 for a single ballast, $50,000 for a single replacement of 500 lights, and $100,000 for a replacement of 2 lights in a 10-year cycle. Together with manual inspection once a month ($0.5 per unit), the annual inspection cost is $3,000, or $30,000 over 10 years. Taken together, the total cost of maintaining 500 high-pressure sodium lights over 10 years is $142,500, a process that requires frequent interruptions to the lighting, which affects the public service experience.
LED fixtures, on the other hand, show significant maintenance cost advantages. Its solid-state light source is designed to last more than 50,000 hours (about 10-15 years), and there is no need to replace the light source during the 10-year cycle; only the lens needs to be cleaned once every 2 years, at a cost of $5 per unit, or $12,500 for 500 units over 10 years. With the intelligent control system, the fault alarm function can accurately locate abnormal lights and reduce the frequency of manual inspection by 70%, and the inspection cost is reduced to $900 per year (the original $3,000 × 30%), with a cumulative total of $0.9 million for 10 years.
Together, the maintenance cost of 500 LED streetlights for 10 years is only $21,500, saving more than 85% compared with traditional light sources. In addition, the intelligent system can also predict the life of components through data analysis, early warning of potential failures (e.g., abnormal battery voltage), turning passive maintenance into active management, further reducing the additional costs of unplanned downtime, and improving the reliability and management efficiency of the lighting system.
solar street light
The initial cost of solar street lights is 1.5-2 times higher than that of traditional street lights, about 4500 USD for a single unit (including solar panel, lithium battery, controller), but cable-free laying can save 50,000-100,000 USD/km. In areas where electricity costs $0.20/kWh, the premium can be recovered in 8-10 years; in areas where electricity costs are high (e.g., $0.50/kWh), it takes only 5 years. The core cost is in the energy storage system: lithium batteries last 5-8 years, accounting for about 30% of the total cost, and need to be replaced around year 5.
The initial cost of the intelligent control system increases by 10%-15% (150-200 USD for a single light), but it can realize dynamic dimming and fault warning, save energy by more than 40% per year, save electricity cost by more than 26,000 USD per year for 500 street lights, and improve maintenance efficiency by 90%. The government’s green subsidy for smart streetlights can reach 10%-20% of the project cost, further shortening the payback cycle.
Through full life cycle cost modeling and technology selection, the street light system can become a landmark project for green transformation of the city, reducing long-term expenditure while empowering sustainable development and data management, and realizing the transformation from a “cost center” to a “value carrier”. The transformation from “cost center” to “value carrier” will be realized.
