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City launched 2-year project to repair over 100K streetlights to curb violence

By Kaleah Mcilwain

Once the sun sets, that’s when the streetlights around Philly turn on—but not every area is well-lit.

That is changing with the launch of the city’s Philadelphia Streetlight Improvement Project (PSIP) that kicked off Tuesday.

Crews will replace or connect more than 130,000 LED lights at recreation centers, roadways, alleyways, and residential and commercial corridors across Philly.

Recreation centers are a top priority for the city and first on the list is Shepard Recreation Center in West Philly.

“We are doing our best to make sure that we’re providing everything we can to people in that community and communities all across the city that have really been bearing disproportionately the brunt of increased crime,” Emily Schapira with the Philadelphia Energy Authority said.

In August 2022 five people were injured when almost 100 shots were fired near the Shepard Center while kids were practicing sports.

NBC10’s Leah Uko spoke with parents who hope the lights, along with security cameras, will help to curb violence.

“Attract more positive people as opposed to looking so deprived,” Gregory Cole Jr., a father, said

Schapira said city surveys found that improvements like better lighting and security cameras added to recreation centers last year were part of the solution to crime.

“It’s certainly not the solution, right? It’s a solution,” Schapira said. “We know that the challenges that Philadelphia has requires a whole government approach to make sure that the city is doing everything it possibly can.”

In two years, every street light in the city will be converted and connected to a lighting management system. This means the lights will be more energy efficient, cutting costs, and they will be more reliable.

The management system will also allow for real-time information about outages instead of relying on 3-1-1 calls from residents.