Say, around 1-2AM? Y'know, since car headlights are vastly superior than they were back in the 50's, lights actually encourage crime, and they produce massive amounts of light pollution and waste energy?

Or, how about focusing them better? It's absurd when I can practically turn off the lights in my apartment because the street I'm on is so brightly lit at 3AM. Cambridge seems to have this right on a lot of its streets- there's just enough light to see where you're going on the sidewalks, and what light there is, is focused so that it doesn't spill into people's homes at night, into driver's eyes on the road, etc. Funny thing about focusing them better- you can use less powah, mistah Mayah.

This city is actually pretty at night. (from a distance.) I can't particularly argue against the measure; it sounds like it'll save a heck of a lot of electricity. It just seems a darned shame, is all.

Relatedly:

- Is this why we got rid of the cool blue lighting that was originally on the Zakim, and that was briefly on the Pru this summer?

- The Old Hancock Building did NOT have a white light at the top until they put one up to color it green for the Celtics win. Right? Or have I been blind?

- Brett mentions focusing. MIT's got some really bright (arc?) lights on their athletic fields, and the sky around them, until 10:30 or so each night. (and, obviously, so does Fenway! But that's NIMBY.) In theory, I would think that a perfectly focused and shuttered light would use less energy - if x% of your light is leaking onto the surroundings, that's x% extra energy, right? But I know zip about lighting. I don't mean to sound like you-know-who, but does anyone know any resources that discuss the topic, especially from a cost POV, maybe with some vendor names?

I'm in a high-rise office tower, and our offices have motion sensor lights. If nobody is around, the lights go off.

Makes perfect sense - and it is great fun to come in in the morning and say "let there be LIGHT!" with a grand hand wave to make it so.

but what would that mean in terms of the crime rate in Boston?

Also, what would it mean for somebody who's out for an evening on the town and they don't leave for home until after eleven? Would it mean that places such as clubs, theatres, etc., would have to close down early? Just curious.

I see a lot of cleaners coming home on the first trains in the morning, are they gonna get night-vision goggles?

I was living in the South End when the Berkeley Building aka Old John Hancock Building was first lit, on the sides - horrible!

Walking down Chandler St. went from being a pleasant walk in pools of streetlight to a flat orange landscape where everyone looked zombie-fied. Worse yet there wasn't any dark anymore, just building-glow. All to light the slab-sides of a not particularly (at night) attractive building!

In return for that great orange glowing monstrosity looming over us we lost any chance of ever seeing a night sky, of leaving the curtains open on a summer night & having a dark bedroom, of enjoying the contrast of light & dark in our neighborhood.

So on quality-of-life issues turn the lights off! It may make a developer all tingly 'down there' to see 'their' building lit up like a christmas tree on the horizon, but to the neighbors it is just another big Bladerunner-like object 'up there'.

As to security lighting, intentional or not, I've seen it go both ways. The Fens certainly saw a drop in crime once folks using it's paths at night could spot thieves hanging out ahead. And parking lots have fewer problems with _some_ lighting, so folks aren't pulling in for a quickie/shoot up/buy & sell illicit substances.

Don't believe me? Live next to an alley in Boston when it's lights go out. It'll become busier then it ever has been, including during the day, before the city gets around to replacing the lights. Get them back on & the needles, condoms, & empty purses stop accumulating so fast.

But so bright you can read a book - no need. Also lighting into folks eyes is counter-productive - dazzling is worse then darkness.

I know a store manager who was robbed recently - he looked out the shop's glass door before leaving for the night, but couldn't see anyone because the lot lights shine right into his eyes there, illuminating the building. He stepped out, and found a gun to his temple, from thieves who had been standing in what should have been plain sight. If he wasn't forced into a deer-in-headlights situation this wouldn't of happened, due to misguided 'security lighting'.

Playing fields lights, I'm in favor of them, but would love it if they were on a timer.

It's great that folks with different schedules can fit some outdoor play/exercise into their 'day', whenever it is. But instead of setting them to be on, used or not, how about putting a big red button somewhere to turn the lights on for an hour or two? Obviously it should be someplace, er, obvious, and lit at night, probably with an emergency phone too, which means many of the parks already have such a stanchion.

A little more complex then a day/night cycle timer, but doubtless it'd pay for itself soon enough.