MedSkyTour – Interreg Euro-MED – Co-funded by the European Union
Good practice Portugal · Alentejo Partner: ADRAL Public lighting retrofit (LED)

Decorative public lighting replaced with LED in Ponte de Sor

The Municipality of Ponte de Sor modernised its decorative public lighting and is extending LED across its road network – cutting energy use and maintenance, and creating the base for dark-sky-friendly upgrades.

558

LED luminaires installed in decorative public lighting

~95%

of decorative lighting is now LED

~40%

LED coverage on the municipal road network (as reported by the Municipality)

2019–22

Main works 2019–2020; expansion reported in 2022

The challenge

High energy consumption and light spill from older, less efficient fixtures. The Municipality needed to modernise outdoor lighting to reduce costs and limit light pollution.

What they did

As part of its local energy-efficiency policy, the Municipality replaced decorative public lighting with LED in its busiest public spaces, oriented the light towards the areas in use to reduce upward emission, and manages operating hours in leisure and sports areas. LED is now being extended across the municipal road network and villages.

Where

Riverside area Coreto Garden Campo da Restauração Sports Pavilion and Sports Zone

Results

Better energy efficiency and lower maintenance costs, improved visual comfort, and less wasted light – with a potential reduction of local sky glow that supports night-sky quality, biodiversity and astrotourism in Alentejo. Results are monitored through energy bills and maintenance records.

Lessons learned

  1. 1Prioritise replacements in areas with more light spill and night-time use.
  2. 2Embed light-pollution criteria in technical specifications: shielding, levels, colour temperature.
  3. 3Apply schedules, dimming and sensors where appropriate.
  4. 4Measure outcomes – energy and sky quality – and share the benefits with residents.

Can you do it too?

Highly transferable to other low-density municipalities. What you need:

  • An inventory of public lighting
  • Procurement specifications: full shielding, lighting levels, warm light ≤3000 K
  • A financing model: EU funds, ESCO or municipal budget
  • Coordination with sensitive areas and tourism planning

Next steps towards dark skies

  • Prioritise full cut-off luminaires; review or remove upward-facing decorative floodlights
  • Warm colour temperatures (≤3000 K) in future replacements
  • Dimming profiles after a set hour; motion sensors in intermittently used areas
  • Sky-quality measurements (SQM, citizen science) at key points

Photos

[Before / after photo – Riverside area]
[Before / after photo – Coreto Garden]
[Before / after photo – Campo da Restauração]

Measures in this practice

Find out more

Contact

ADRAL – Alentejo Regional Development Agency
Telmo Pena
[contact email]

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