Streetlights help to ensure safe movement of traffic for vehicles and pedestrians, as well as deter criminal activity. Lighting should be based on field conditions relating to roadway classifications and volumes in order to justify the type of streetlights selected. The City of Knoxville has approximately 30,000 streetlights in the city system.
The City has converted high-pressure sodium lights along city streets to
Light Emitting Diode (LED) technology in an effort to become more energy efficient and sustainable, and LED is our standard for all new installations.
In 2010, the City of Knoxville, KUB, and TVA partnered together to start the first LED pilot installation in Knoxville, and after approximately one year of evaluation, the City changed our standard to LED for new installations. After evaluating several LED products, in 2018 the City selected the AEL Autobahn as the City’s standard for new overhead installations.
The City of Knoxville Engineering Department manages maintenance of the majority of the streetlighting system and pays the local utility company (
KUB or
LCUB) for electricity for streetlights on public streets (LCUB maintains and repairs streetlights within their service territory). For wood-pole installations, typical spacing is approximately 200 feet and a typical design height is 30 to 40. Actual spacing of streetlights can vary widely, depending on width of street, the type of streetlight selected, and number of street intersections and curves.
When a new subdivision is proposed with streets to be dedicated to the City of Knoxville, there are two options for street light installations.
OPTION 1: The developer installs the street lights at their expense. They select a City of Knoxville approved street light pole and fixture, prepare a design for City of Knoxville review (and LCUB review where applicable), and install the lights during the site development permit process. Once the street light installation (inspected by the City's Department of Engineering) and the subdivision’s development certification are approved, then the City of Knoxville will take ownership of the street lights.
OPTION 2: The developer requests the City of Knoxville to install street lights. The City evaluates and decides which light pole/fixture is appropriate to install and prepares a lighting design. The City will not install street lights in a subdivision until at least 85% of all properties adjacent to all proposed lights are built-out. This eliminates damage to the street lights resulting from construction within the subdivision and also prevents unnecessary costs associated with partial small installations. The City of Knoxville’s street lighting budget will also determine if and when the street lights can be installed.
The City of Knoxville does not provide streetlights at locations to illuminate private property (parking lots, houses, driveways, private streets). Contact your local utility (
KUB or
LCUB) for more information on installing a streetlight on private property.