Smart street lighting to be trialled on Australian coast

A scheme to use intelligent street lighting is to be given a two-year trial on Australia’s north-east Sunshine Coast.

Smart tech company Telensa has been chosen to pilot the project in the new Maroochydore city centre development.

A major Central Business District is being built on a 52 hectare site on the coast and smart technology is being used from the outset. The hope is that the development will become a new capital city for the Sunshine Coast region, a 100 kilometre long collection of towns, stretching north of Brisbane.

The wireless system uses sensors to recognise movement and only operates when necessary. The sensors can also be used to monitor air quality, traffic, and waste conditions. The new pilot is designed to cut the region’s energy consumption, costs and greenhouse gas emissions.

“We’re delighted to be working with Sunshine Coast Council to make street lighting in Maroochydore smarter and more efficient, with a system that will be responsive to citizens’ needs for decades to come,” said Will Gibson, Founder and Chief Commercial Officer at Telensa. “We’re looking forward to working together on a new generation of low-cost smart sensor applications, enabled by the city’s lighting network.”

Telensa has already deployed its technology around the world with 1.5 million lights installed. 100,000 lights were built in Birmingham, the UK’s second city, and a further 18,000 in Wellington, New Zealand’s capital.

“By making our streetlights smart, Telensa will help us reduce costs and improve the street lighting experience, as well as providing a platform for smart sensor applications,” said Steve Robinson, a councillor at the Sunshine Coast Council, “This deployment is another example of the Council’s commitment to intelligent infrastructure that delivers a safer, smarter, and more efficient environment for our citizens.”

 

Photo Credit: Sunshine Coast Council