Street lights across Oxfordshire could be turned off to save money

The county council is considering the idea as it grapples with how to save £2m on its annual energy bill by 2020 and cut carbon emissions.

Its costs are going up because of higher fuel prices and more street lights being built at new housing estates, while the local authority is also under pressure from government cuts.

More than 40 per cent of its energy costs are from the 60,000 street lights it manages and cabinet member David Nimmo Smith said changes could see some switched off between midnight and 6am.

He stressed safety was a top concern and busy areas such as Oxford were unlikely to see major change, but residents raised concerns it could plunge some areas into darkness.

Leanne McClements, of Five Mile Drive, said: "Wherever you turn off streetlights you are going to make people more vulnerable.

"They are there because there is a need, so it does not make sense to turn them off."

The mum-of-two added: "Most people do work during the day, but I've just taken a job that could mean I finish at 11pm or later and I walk about a mile and a half home.

"I would not want to do that if there were no lights working along my route."

The suggestion also sparked warnings from the AA, which said leaving roads with speed limits of 40mph or higher without lights, particularly A roads, was 'a bad idea'.

Spokesman Luke Bosdet added: "So far the death toll on roads where street lights were switched off (by councils across the country) stands at 11.

"The investigations at inquests showed drivers could not see properly and did not have enough time to react.

"If residents agree to having street lights switched off that is local democracy, but on roads with 40mph limits or above it is just plain dangerous."

The council currently spends about £7m a year on energy and says it wants to stop this cost from rising, with projections showing it will increase to £9m if no action is taken.

The local authority is also committed to cutting its carbon emissions, including in its buildings, by three per cent a year.

Mr Nimmo Smith stressed no decisions had been made yet, but said a special committee was looking at options for street lights.

The senior Conservative councillor added: "We are looking at ways of making sure we still deliver services with less money coming in, but if street lights are going to be switched off it will be not in town centres.

"It could be in areas where you might have a road going out of town, with very few houses on it.

"But clearly safety does come into it and the views of people who live into these areas will come into it.

"So it will be horses for courses. If it is appropriate for a particular area and it can be done, we will look at it."

Labour's Steve Curran, county councillor for Blackbird Leys, said: "People's perception of their own safety is very important.

"We need to approach this idea with great caution."

A county council spokesman added new technology could also help save money: "Our ongoing street lighting LED programme is an example of what can be delivered."