THE Government says it will be saving up to 87 per cent on the monthly electricity bill for traffic signals by replacing all incandescent bulbs with Light Emitting Diode (LED) lamps islandwide over the next 12 months.

With some 40 per cent of the LED lamps already installed, a $14-million contract was signed last Friday for work to begin by month-end to replace the remaining 1,990 lamps.

Transport Minister Mike Henry said the programme will focus on intersections with an average monthly bill in excess of $25,000. This, he explained, should be reduced to approximately $3,500 a month.

"With that savings and economic approach to a new area of installation it will also help to maybe add traffic lights to rural urban areas where you couldn't do it because you couldn't afford it before," he said.

According to Henry, the LED conversion programme will start as soon as the equipment arrives by the end of September. Some 40 intersections are expected to be completed by year-end.

At Friday's signing with the contractor, Machinery and Services Limited, at the transport ministry's offices in Kingston, Patrick Wong, chief executive officer of the National Woks Agency, said the authorities will examine installing the LED lights in street lamps as well.

Meanwhile, Henry said his ministry is looking to provide new energy bulbs and lamps at the Half-Way-Tree Transportation Centre.

Henry said the Government has been making every effort to improve road safety and at the same time reduce operating costs through the use of appropriate technologies. As such, LED traffic signal lamps, he argued, have become an efficient and effective alternative to traditional incandescent traffic signals.

Two main advantages of LED traffic signals are the low energy usage of 20-22 watts compared to the 100 watt incandescent lamps, and a longer life span of seven to 10 years compared to three months.

Additionally, the low energy usage of LED traffic signals is expected to realise significant savings in monthly and yearly energy costs.

The LED lamps are also brighter when compared to incandescent lamps, thus enhancing safety.

The new LED lamps also have the capability for back-up power during a power cut.

"Unlike incandescent lamps with a single filament, LED lamps consist of a matrix of several dozen LEDs. The lamps will continue to function even if a few of the LEDs stop working," Henry explained.

Additionally, Henry said they are also examining installing solar lights on certain sections of the North Coast Highway as well as along the Palisados main road.

Meanwhile, the transport ministry also signed a $12.9 million contract with Illuminat Jamaica Limited to implement a Project Resources Management System for the National Works Agency. The project, which is being jointly funded by the Inter-American Development Bank and the China Harbour Engineering Company, will provide the agency with the capacity to optimally manage its human capital.

"For efficient workforce management, the NWA will use this tool to deploy staff across its portfolio of projects," Henry said.

The application will be accessible over the agency's Intranet, and will allow office and field staff, through a Self Service Portal, to access information on their employment and current work assignments.