Street Lighting

Street lighting covers the full range of road and pathway illumination, from large-scale public highway installations to private road lighting for residential estates and driveways. Lyco stocks public street lights, residential street lights, solar street lights, street lamp bulbs, and street light accessories. Trade Pro accounts available. Free delivery over £70.

Find the best street lighting products at Lyco

Street lighting serves a fundamentally different purpose from domestic or commercial outdoor lighting. Whether on a public highway managed by a local authority, a private road on a residential development, or an estate or business park, street lighting must meet specific standards for illuminance, uniformity, and energy efficiency and must be designed and installed by qualified contractors familiar with the relevant legislation and standards.

The primary standard governing street and road lighting design in the UK is BS 5489-1, which defines maintained average illuminance requirements for different road categories. LED street lighting has become the dominant technology for new installations and retrofit programmes, with efficacies of 130–180 lm/W making the energy savings over legacy high-pressure sodium (SON) or metal halide sources compelling, typically a 50–70% reduction in energy consumption on a like-for-like replacement.

For solar applications in locations without grid connection or where infrastructure costs are prohibitive, solar street lights offer an increasingly viable alternative. For replacement lamp sources in existing columns, see our street lamp bulbs range. For column brackets, arms, and mounting accessories, see street light accessories. Lyco offers free delivery on all orders over £70.

Frequently Asked Questions

What standards govern street lighting in the UK?

BS 5489-1 is the primary standard for road lighting design, defining illuminance requirements, uniformity ratios, and glare limitations for different road and pedestrian area categories. BS EN 13201 is the European standard on which BS 5489-1 is based. For public highway installations, compliance with these standards is mandatory; for private roads, they provide the recognised benchmark for good practice.

Can I install street lighting on a private road?

Yes, private road lighting on residential estates, business parks, and private access roads is not subject to local authority approval, though planning permission may be required for column installations depending on height and location. The electrical installation must be carried out by a qualified electrician and should be designed to BS 5489-1 standards for appropriate illuminance levels.

What is the energy saving from switching to LED street lights?

LED street lights typically achieve 50–70% energy reduction compared to legacy high-pressure sodium (SON) sources at equivalent maintained illuminance levels. A 70W LED street light replacing a 150W SON luminaire typically delivers equivalent or better lux levels. Payback periods on LED retrofits are typically 3–7 years, depending on energy tariff and operating hours.

Do streetlights need a column, or can they be wall-mounted?

Both options are available. Column-mounted street lights are standard for road and footpath applications. Wall-bracket mounting is used where columns are impractical, on building facades, boundary walls, or in constrained urban spaces. The appropriate bracket type is listed in each product's compatible accessories, or see our street light accessories range.

Do you sell street lighting near me?

Lyco delivers street lighting to all UK mainland addresses with next-working-day delivery as standard. Orders over £70 qualify for free delivery, and same-day dispatch applies to the vast majority of in-stock products across the range.