First it was solar and wind-powered streetlamps in Spain and now it is hybrid-powered traffic lights in Nebraska.
In Lincoln, Nebraska, history is being made at a traffic light for the intersection of 84th Street and Highway 2. The first of its kind in the country, this light is being powered by two solar panels and a single wind turbine.
The two solar panels combined are capable of generating 420 watts while the wind turbine can generate 1,300 watts at a peak wind speed of 29 mph, easily providing for all of the needs of the lights which on an average day draw 450 watts of energy. At a cost of $8,000 each, the lights are not cheap; but any excess power that is generated is sold back to the grid, enabling the city to make back some of its costs.
The project is a part of an alternative energy study being done for the community’s Cleaner Greener Lincoln initiative and is funded by a $1 million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation. It is a joint venture between the City of Lincoln, the University of Nebraska Transportation Center, and the University of Nebraska Electrical Engineering Department.
Mo Zhou, a civil engineering graduate assistant researcher at University of Nebraska-Lincoln, believes that the lights could save the city some money on its traffic light utility bill, which currently runs about $72,000 per year. “We can supply our traffic signals by renewable power source so we don’t need to get more power from the power grid, so it would reduce our traffic operation cost,” she said.
If these lights are a success, which they seem to be, I imagine we will be seeing them at most intersections in America very soon.
[via 1011now]
Image Credit: Horia Varlan/Flickr