Downtown Madison Holiday Lighting Converted to Energy-Saving LEDs

MADISON, Wis. (November 15, 2006)—The holiday “snowflake” lights that decorate State Street and the Capitol Square from Thanksgiving through January are a downtown Madison tradition.  This year, this tradition takes a sustainable turn, with conversion of all the bulbs over to energy-saving LEDs (or “light emitting diodes”), which use up to 95% less energy than regular incandescent bulbs.

The annual holiday lighting is a project of Madison’s Central Business Improvement District (BID), in partnership with the City of Madison Parks Division, and is funded by downtown property and business owners.  This conversion to LED lighting is supported by sponsorship from Madison Gas and Electric, with additional support from the Wisconsin Department of Administration, Division of Energy. 

Earlier this fall, volunteer downtown BID Ambassadors worked with Parks staff to switch out thousands of bulbs in more than 250 snowflake light fixtures to LEDs, which give off an appropriately frosty white light.  Workers began hanging the snowflake lights downtown this week and expect to have them all up by the weekend after Thanksgiving.

The switch to LEDs will result in both substantial energy savings, and in substantial reduction of pollution.  According to Focus on Energy, 19 Wisconsin homes could be heated for a year with the energy savings of just one season of LED snowflake light operation.  The conversion to LEDs reduces the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide by 234 tons, the equivalent of removing 31 cars from the road for a year.

“We hear from many Madison residents and visitors that the snowflake lights are one of their favorite things about downtown,” said BID Executive Director, Mary Carbine. “We’re so pleased to enhance this festive tradition with energy conservation.”  The BID coordinates seasonal decorations, carolers, and a free trolley on weekends to welcome holiday shoppers to the central downtown district, home to more than 300 shops, galleries, restaurants, pubs and other businesses.  For more information, see www.visitdowntownmadison.com.

LED lighting is also a great choice for Wisconsin residents interested in energy-saving holiday decorations for their home or business. “Switching to LED lights reduces electricity generation, which is a holiday gift to the environment. Using LED lights can be a part of your pledge to become more energy efficient,” said Steve Kraus of Madison Gas and Electric.

In addition to saving energy, LED lamps are long lasting (up to ten times longer than conventional incandescent lamps), sturdy (made of solid plastic with no glass bulbs to break) and safe (bulbs don’t heat up, or have components that can burn out or combust). For more information, see the Madison Gas and Electric website at www.mge.com or Wisconsin’s Focus on Energy site at www.focusonenergy.com.