Relume installs LED lights on Ambassador Bridge

The Oxford-based company is in the process of installing six LED lights in the truck inspection area on the U.S. side. The lights are part of a test phase of the lights.

"If they like it they will go full bore," says Bob Hahn, general manager of Lumecon, the national distributor for Relume's LED streetlight technology.

The lights are expected to significantly cut the bridge's electricity expenses because LEDs are more energy-efficient and longer-lasting. LEDs typically cut electric bills in half because they use less energy because they mostly produce light that is visible to the human eye. Normal incandescent lights produce a large amount of ambient light that isn't.

The technology is already widely used in traffic lights, TVs and brake lights for cars; as well as those expensive flashlights at REI. Ann Arbor is in the process of installing them in its downtown streetlights. Those lights are expected to pay for themselves through energy savings within 4.2 years.

Ann Arbor is also looking into installing LEDs in all of its streetlights within the next few years. Other cities like Ferndale, Wyandotte and Ypsilanti are seriously considering similar options.

Source: Bob Hahn, general manager of Lumecon
Writer: Jon Zemke