The town of Williams, Arizona, received quite a Christmas gift a few day ago.
An anonymous benefactor will cover the cost of installing up to 160 new street lights in town, including its tourist-heavy stretch of Route 66, reported the Williams-Grand Canyon News.
The lights are worth a total of between $150,000 and $180,000. But that’s not all:
- The lights will be solar-powered, which won’t require city workers to run electric lines to them.
- The lights won’t need much work on the sidewalk to install.
- The only maintenance required is swapping out the battery every three to five years, which still would be cheaper than the cost of electricity for traditional street lights.
- The lights have an old-fashioned gaslight look, which you can see here.
The lights will be installed within weeks.
Alas, the article didn’t mention the manufacturer of the solar-powered street lights. Regardless, I’m certain a few Route 66 communities will carefully watch how well these street lights do and how well they hold up with age. At only about $1,000 a pop for retro-looking street lighting, they might prove to be a very good alternative.