Flagstaff, ADOT pioneer dark-sky lighting model with global impact

Added: 2026-04-30

[00:00:00]The city of Flagstaff and the State Department of Transportation are working together on a project to reduce light pollution in the area where dark skies are important to science as well as their economy.

[00:00:10]>> They are replacing thousands of street light bulbs with new amber LED lights and this is a pretty big deal for the city. Mason Carroll live in Flagstaff with more details. Mason.

[00:00:22]Hey guys, good evening. You know, if you've ever been to Flagstaff at night, you've probably noticed that our street lights, like the one behind me, have an amber glow rather than just white light.

[00:00:31]You know, once this project is completed, it will make Flagstaff the first city in the world to use amber LEDs to protect dark skies.

[00:00:42]The Milky Way galaxy is not visible for more than 80% of North America because of light pollution.

[00:00:51]That's not the case in Flagstaff, which was the first international dark sky city in the world. One of the ways the city reduces light pollution is with amber street lights. That amber light, it's there, but your eyes can't see it very well. It really helps to protect the Milky Way and the visibility of stars. Christian Luginbuhl is the president of the Flagstaff Dark Sky Coalition.

[00:01:14]He says Flagstaff has been setting dark sky standards for decades. Now, they're about to set another. But this is the first municipality in the where in the world to implement a city-scale lighting system using amber LED. The city of Flagstaff is wrapping up a project to replace 4,000 light bulbs with dark sky friendly LEDs.

[00:01:37]Now, ADOT is preparing to replace more than 400 light bulbs and fixtures on major roads around Flagstaff, including I-40 and I-17. We came to the the decision that it it will work in terms of striking the balance between roadway safety, especially pedestrians, cyclists at intersections, um and that other part of the balance is uh Flagstaff status as a dark skies community. Doug Nintzel is the ADOT spokesperson. He says after testing for safety, their team will begin installing these lights next month. It's about being able to point the street lights downward, let them do their jobs in terms of safety, but also uh really contribute to the um dark skies efforts in Flagstaff.

[00:02:27]Luginbuhl says ADOT's contribution puts Arizona as a state on the map for protecting dark skies. We have really stepped up to learning ways and accepting ways driven by science that help us to protect this night sky.

[00:02:46]And this project will cost ADOT a little over $1 million and should be completed by this summer.

[00:02:52]Very interesting stuff there, Mason. So, was ADOT ever using any dark sky friendly lighting in that area before all of this?

[00:03:00]Well, they weren't using the amber lights that the city was, but all of their lights were pointed down. They also had light fixtures that reduced the amount of light that could go skyward, but these new amber lights will definitely make a big difference in protecting our dark skies in and around Flagstaff. The more you know. Love it.

[00:03:18]>> that is so interesting. Mason, thank you so much.