North Yorkshire village switches to dark sky lighting

Thu 23 Mar 2023, 21:28

The article I posted about the southern French Town in 2005 on this Forum pointed out they were *increasing* the *directed* light *improving* the coverage with more lights - hooded against backscatter, motion/IF detected, focussed to convoy/escort up the street and deter lurkers. NOT reducing *effective* lighting but increasing it.

Come on! This Town did this EIGHTEEN YEARS AGO. Why, I ask, can't we? I'd like to see the stars again above magnitude whatever..

Thu 23 Mar 2023, 20:27

I agree with what Janet has said about "focusing light to the useful areas and not letting it back scatter generally to the sky... having streetlights with motion detectors and directional hoods etc."

However, I think Charlbury is lacking street lighting and we don't need any less! It would be really helpful to have a streetlight on Dyers Hill; walking up from the station late at night is not great in pitch black, particularly in the winter. It would also be good to have one near the second entrance to Nine Acres (behind the medical centre). Again, walking past that part of the town at night is unnerving - and regardless of whether streetlights make a difference to crime, it would make me, and suspect others feel safer.

Thu 23 Mar 2023, 15:02

I for one find that walking up Crawborough at night is hazardous enough, without turning off the already patchy lighting. There are a whole lot of uneven pathways in the town due to its history. Falling may seem a trivial thing when young, but for the elderly it can be rather serious.

Tue 21 Mar 2023, 07:31

All these posts are as usual written by people with good eyesight and no balance issues. Motion sensitive lighting is not a good idea as you need a consistent level of brightness. 

Mon 20 Mar 2023, 23:49

There are other academic studies that show nothing at all like those College of Policing figures. I haven’t read that report so, without knowing the fine detail of its research methods, I can’t argue to its reliability or relevance to Charlbury.
A study in Dec 2018 in the Journal of the British Society of Criminology noted “It is clear that, despite the current importance of this topic in the UK, there is very limited evidence about the effects on crime of switching off street lighting. . . . there is a striking shortage of methodologically rigorous studies which have examined the impact on crime of switching off street lighting.” It’s conclusion, based on a 36 month study comparing 2 large areas in Essex - 1 where street lights were on and 1 where they were turned off, noted that “Contrary to expectations, the results of this research indicated that switching off street lighting does not inevitably result in increases in crime.”

The issue of the fear of crime, which is often fed by media fascination with violent crimes and hyped via social media (e.g. just see the way that anti-migrant and asylum seekers rhetoric and violent demonstrations have been fueled by false or manipulated claims on social media on top of the daily outpourings by certain media outlets), is more relevant.
Charlbury does not have a crime problem on its streets and it is very unfortunate if anybody feels that it does or that it might. Anecdotally, someone I know who is female victim of a serious mugging in London feels perfectly safe walking the streets of Charlbury at any time of night. From postings on this forum, it is true that there are occasional incidents of vehicle crime and rare attempts at burglary - they are, thankfully, few and far between.

Mon 20 Mar 2023, 20:46

The study that G Clarke refers to is not at all convincing. It's very broad brush in its approach to data. It's also very hard to know whether or not the methodology adopted is applicable to Charlbury which already has very low levels of street lighting, especially in some of the areas outside the centre of town. 

It also does not address questions of gender, race and disability which have been shown to affect how safe people feel in unlit or poorly lit areas after dark, as demonstrated by the recent (August 2021) report by the Office for National Statistics on  perceptions of personal safety and experiences of harassment. Too many people who feel fearful simply don't go out much (or sometimes at all) after dark.

Nor is it only a matter of perception. A 2022 report on interventions to prevent violence against women and girls by the College of Policing states: "Overall, improved street lighting has been found to reduce crime. On average, violent and property crime reduced by 21% in areas where street lighting was improved, relative to areas where it was not. It is possible that improved street lighting is likely to have more of an impact in those places where lighting is currently poor."

Yes, by all means adapt the lighting so that it points downwards rather than upwards, but to seek to reduce all street lighting and remove all security lights is a much more contentious issue. 

Mon 20 Mar 2023, 15:46

One of the points of this sort of scheme is focusing light to the useful areas and not letting it back scatter generally to the sky. Streetlights with motion detectors and directional hoods etc. Charlbury lighting would be improved!

Sun 19 Mar 2023, 22:56

“There is no clear scientific evidence that increased outdoor lighting deters crimes. It may make us feel safer, but has not been shown to make us safer.” For more detail see https://www.darksky.org/light-pollution/lighting-crime-and-safety/

I also did research with urban planners, crime experts including police, etc. a few years ago and, in relation to the popular idea that street lighting deters crime, found that, depending on the circumstances: a. it can make the work of criminals, such as drug dealers, easier as their clients can see where they are and they can all more easily see what they’re doing, and b. enhanced street lighting in some crime areas can end up just pushing the crime into other adjacent spots.
Creating zones of bright light like, for example, the outside lights that so many people have on all night on their houses in Charlbury or set to come on with automatic movement detection means that if you’re looking out from where the light is you are less able to see what is in the darkness beyond, and innocent passers-by get dazzled to no good purpose.

Sun 19 Mar 2023, 15:00

An excellent idea, Malcolm. But I wonder what the cost implications are?

Sun 19 Mar 2023, 14:35

We need more street lighting, not less. It’s dangerously dark on many of our streets.

Sun 19 Mar 2023, 13:42

One of the first items on moving here with the kids 18 years ago was about the streetlights. And the night sky has got brighter ever since! We should do something like this. 

Link here, 

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/mar/19/good-heavens-north-yorkshire-village-hawnby-switches-to-dark-sky-friendly-lighting

entire article pasted in below if you don't want to follow the link:

Good…

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