A one year program to evaluate the use of LED outdoor street lights has been launched by the town of Chapel Hill, North Carolina and Duke Energy Carolinas.

As part of the evaluation, 10 existing high pressure sodium lamps will be replaced with LED lamps by Duke Energy Carolinas along Franklin Street from Columbia to Henderson streets.
 
Duke Energy Carolinas is working with the town of Chapel Hill to evaluate the future potential of LED technology to be generally applied across the system, which is expected to reduce both energy consumption and equipment maintenance costs. The company will develop data on operating costs, light-level readings and energy consumption during the program.

LEDs which produce a white light with enhanced color spectrum have already been used in traffic signals, accent lighting, outdoor signs and retail-refrigeration equipment. For electric utilities, LED technology has potential as an energy-efficient option for outdoor street and security lighting.