Los Angeles to repair and replace 60,000 street lights, with solar lights nearing 6,500 by year-end

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass joined Councilmember Hugo Soto-Martínez and community leaders at Selma Park in Hollywood on Thursday evening to highlight progress on her initiative to repair and replace up to 60,000 street lights citywide over the next two years.

What the plan covers

Bass signed Executive Directive 18 in March to launch the plan, which uses solar street light technology to bolster public safety, clear the city's decade-long backlog of street light repairs, combat copper wire theft and reduce energy consumption. The city has installed nearly 5,000 solar street lights so far and is on pace to pass 6,000 this year, with the mayor saying the total should reach nearly 6,500 by year-end — nearly quadrupling the number of solar lights in less than six months. More than 270 solar lights have gone up in Council District 13 alone.

Why solar

The city says street light assessment funding has remained unchanged since 1996, while copper wire theft has risen 1,200% over the past 10 years, and repairs caused by theft cost at least four times standard maintenance. Prioritizing lights that are currently out delivers immediate safety and livability gains while laying the groundwork for a modern, sustainable network, and supports the city's goal of 100% clean energy by 2035.

Bass said the initiative breaks away from outdated street light infrastructure and invests in solar technology to clear the backlog of service requests and make communities safer. She also noted that her Inside Safe program, in partnership with Soto-Martínez, has brought nearly 50 people indoors from an encampment that once stood at Selma Park, and the site has remained clear since.