Street Lighting
Concerned about street lights being
switched off at night?
We want to
reassure residents and businesses across Hertfordshire that crime
across the county continues to fall and the Constabulary has one of
the best detection rates of any police force in the country.
Chief Constable Andy Bliss said:
We recognise Hertfordshire County Council’s need to make
cost savings at a time of national budgetary
restraints. It is perfectly understandable,
however, that its street light programme may cause people to
question their safety and security, but we have seen no evidence
that reduced street lighting results in crime increases.
Since the start of the county council’s roll out there has been
no increase in incidents or any change in crime patterns that might
relate to street lights being switched off between midnight and
6am.
Crime report and crime
patterns
A report commissioned by the Police Authority in the Spring
(March 2012) concluded that ‘there is no discernible evidence that
crime has increased by the strategy to reduce street lighting
between midnight and 6am.’
Crime has continued to fall across the whole of Hertfordshire
during 2011/12 and the Constabulary continues to monitor crime on a
daily basis, adjusting patrol patterns and using policing and crime
reduction techniques in reaction to incidents as required and as
appropriate.
It should be remembered that the majority of the county has never
had any street lighting (for example, most of the county’s rural
areas) and crime is no more prevalent in these places.
In addition, many types of crime do not relate in any way to street
lighting, for example, alcohol-fuelled disorder, domestic abuse,
fraud, drug offences, shop lifting. And some crimes can be, in
fact, more prevalent during daytime hours – for example, household
burglary. We know that burglars generally want to avoid
confrontation so will target homes that are empty during the
daytime when occupants are away or at work.
Crime prevention advice
Most crime, in which something is stolen from a person or building,
is opportunistic - an item of value is left or placed in a
position that makes it a target to criminals. For example, sat
navs, lap top computers or power tools left in vehicles; mobile
phones or bags on a bar or on a table in cafes. Street
lighting is not generally considered an influencing factor and you
can reduce your risk of becoming a victim of acquisitive crime by
following our normal crime prevention advice - visit our crime
prevention section
Police are working with the county
council to monitor crime and incident rates and it has been agreed
that street lighting can be switched back on in specific locations,
should evidence suggest this is necessary to prevent crime or
promote security.
Policing the county
Chief Constable Andy Bliss said:
Police officers will be working 366 days and nights this
year and, as part of my programme to get more officers out on foot
and bike patrol, they will be actively patrolling both lit and
unlit areas across the county, with their standard equipment which
includes a torch, every night in order to keep crime levels as low
as possible.
If you need to report a crime or anti-social behaviour, please call
police on 
101 and if the incident is happening now you
should use 999.
If you have a query about any technical aspects of part-night
lighting please see the link below for background and frequently
asked questions:
http://www.hertsdirect.org/services/transtreets/highways/streetlightenergy/changestlightatnight/
Converting most of the county's streetlights to part-night
operation is a county council policy decision. A review of
the policy will be undertaken next year. If you wish to
express a view please contact Stuart Pile, Cabinet Member for
Highways and Transport, or your local county councillor:
http://www.hertsdirect.org/your-council