San Diego street light outages and energy waste anger locals | cbs8.com

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SAN DIEGO — Residents in multiple San Diego neighborhoods are expressing frustration over persistent street light issues, with some areas left in complete darkness for years while others deal with lights that never turn off.

In North Pacific Beach, entire blocks have been without functioning street lights for years.

John Maloney, a local resident, describes the situation.

"It's truly pitch black on some of these blocks. You can't see. You need your phone flashlight just to make sure you don't trip."

Maloney also voiced concerns about pedestrian safety and potential crime risks.

Similar issues plague Point Loma, where entire neighborhoods lack working street lights, with some fixtures placed in the middle of the road. Residents have filed numerous reports through the city's Get It Done system, many of which remain unresolved years later.

CBS 8 reached out to the City's Transportation Director, Bethany Bezak, for answers.

"Unfortunately, the average Get It Done response time right now for street light outage is around 350 days," Bezak admitted.

She explained that her department has only 18 electricians to maintain and repair over 60,000 street lights, some of which are more than 70 years old.

"You know, we're really trying to do our best to get through this, but it is a challenge with all of this aging infrastructure," Bezak stated.

The complexity of repairs often extends beyond simple bulb replacements. In a demonstration at a Mission Beach work site, crews discovered that the issue wasn't with the bulb or pole, but with wiring under concrete more than 20 yards away.

In South Park, residents face the opposite problem. Mike Gruby reports that the lights in his neighborhood have been on continuously for nearly nine years.

"It's probably been on, almost all that entire time and it's day and night.. it's 24 hours a day," Gruby said, expressing concern about energy waste.

The Transportation Department acknowledges the need for more funding to hire additional electricians. Bezak encouraged residents to participate in the budget process.

"Ultimately we close the gap and we restore the lights by getting more funding allocated to street light repairs."

As San Diego grapples with these widespread lighting issues, residents continue to seek solutions, with some even resorting to installing their own solar street lights on city poles, highlighting the urgency of the problem.

In response to CBS 8's inquiries, the city inspected and repaired eight faulty photocells in South Park and the lights are now off during the day.

Meanwhile, the situation in Point Loma remains more complex due to multiple points of damage and a lack of replacement parts. The city has installed some solar lights in the area, but repairs needed for a more permanent solution are currently unfunded.

For PB residents, who already pay an extra assessment on their property taxes for street light maintenance, there's a glimmer of hope. A capital project has been funded and is in the design phase, aiming to restore service to approximately 50 streetlights sometime next year.

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