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School of Public Policy alum Mary Shoemaker, senior research analyst with the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (AEEE), was quoted in an article in Energy News Network on Jan. 8, 2020.
Per the article, the Virginia Department of Transportation is set to replace 9,600 lights along roads with LED lights, which consume less energy. Shoemaker spoke on the political context of the move.
Clean energy nonprofits are praising Virginia for announcing plans to forge ahead with upgrades to roadway lighting within days of the Trump administration rolling back federal light bulb efficiency standards.
Starting this spring, the state will replace 9,600 lights on limited-access highways, interchanges, park-and-ride lots, rest areas and weigh stations with efficient light-emitting diode products. The LED changeover will reduce energy consumption by at least 50% and cut 8,800 tons of heat-trapping gas emissions, according to Virginia Department of Transportation estimates.
The irony of the juxtaposed — and polar opposite — state and federal announcements last month was not lost on Mary Shoemaker, a senior research analyst with the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy.
“Virginia’s modernization project demonstrates that states can take steps to improve lighting efficiency and preserve taxpayer resources, in spite of inaction from the federal government,” Shoemaker said.
