Airport Replacing Half of Its Solar Lights to Improve Safety

July 15, 2013
For those who like to stroll along the road into the airport in the evening, their stroll might be a little less dim and dangerous by next week.

July 12--ST. THOMAS -- For those who like to stroll along the road into the airport in the evening, their stroll might be a little less dim and dangerous by next week.

The V.I. Port Authority began replacing about half the lights along a mile stretch of Airport Road on Monday. The replacements are expected to be complete by late this week or early next week.

A V.I. Water and Power Authority crew is installing the new lights along the road running between the runway and Lindbergh Bay, and it already has replaced about a quarter-mile of the lights.

The crew still has about three-quarters of a mile of lights to work on nearer to the airport terminal and parking lot.

Port Authority officials said they have received complaints for the last year about the poor lighting that lines the road, which is cited as a safety hazard. Complaints have come in from people driving to and from the airport, walking to and from the airport, and also working at the airport.

The Port Authority attributes the poor lighting to the solar lighting that it installed last year.

"We installed the solar lights to be green, but they aren't bright enough," said Port Authority spokeswoman Monifa Marrero.

The authority spent an undisclosed amount of money to install the solar lights in the street lamps that line the road and sidewalk and that also are in the airport's parking lot.

The authority did not know how many solar lights it installed last year or how much money had been saved since installing them.

The authority expects to remove about half of the solar lights, or every other light, that it put into place near the airport.

Port Authority Executive Director Carlton Dowe said he did not know how much the installation of the new lights will cost or how much more the authority would spend in terms of long-term energy costs.

"I can only know when we get our bill from WAPA," Dowe said. "Whatever the cost will be, we are going to have to incur it. While I'm concerned about energy conservation, I'm more concerned about lives."

The solar lights that are to be replaced are not related to the solar lights that were installed on-island in 2010 and were funded as part of the $9 million energy saving effort funded through the American Recovery and Investment Act.

Crews likely will be working on the lights through the weekend and possibly into early next week.

Copyright 2013 - The Virgin Islands Daily News, St. Thomas