• Yunex Traffic is replacing Bristol’s halogen traffic signal lamps with energy-efficient LEDs, improving reliability and future-proofing infrastructure.
• Around 1,700 signal aspects will be upgraded across the 24-month programme.
• The project is predicted to cut energy use by 57% per site and save 50 tonnes of carbon annually, reducing maintenance and emissions. 

Working for Bristol City Council, Yunex Traffic is delivering a major upgrade to the city’s traffic signal network, replacing all its existing halogen signal lamps with modern, energy-efficient LED units. The project, which is being delivered by Yunex Traffic’s locally based field services team, will significantly reduce carbon emissions and energy consumption across the city, as well as providing more reliable, efficient and future-proof traffic signals, citywide. 

Bristol’s retrofit programme was mobilised in August 2024 following the council’s successful application for a £600,000 grant from the Department for Transport (DfT) through the national Traffic Signals Grant Challenge. The funding enables the replacement of every halogen traffic signal site with a modern LED signal head. 

James Dowling, Signals & Traffic Control Manager at Bristol City Council, explained: “Back in 2023 we still had around 1,700 traditional incandescent halogen lamps fitted at sites across the city. As well as consuming large amounts of power, the need to regularly replace these lamps had a significant maintenance and carbon impact on the city, both in the costs associated with maintenance and the manufacture of the replacement lamps and the vehicle miles travelled to fit them.

“Once we were secured grant money from the Department for Transport, working in collaboration with our traffic signals contractor Yunex Traffic, we quickly mobilised to start retrofitting signal sites across the city, and the project has been completed on budget and on schedule.”

The programme is already delivering significant benefits. In terms of energy savings and carbon reductions, early results indicate that the programme will save 50 tonnes of carbon across the city each year, as well as reducing energy consumption by 57% at each site. The LED lamps will also require significantly less maintenance, as well as providing improved visibility in all weather and light conditions, and enhanced reliability at the traffic signal locations.

Wilke Reints, Managing Director, Yunex Traffic UK, added: “Across the UK, thousands of traffic signals still rely on outdated halogen lamps. Our work with Bristol City Council and other authorities shows how our LED retrofit solution allows councils to retain their existing roadside infrastructure while introducing low-maintenance, long-life technology that improves safety and reduces environmental impact. Upgrading to LED units also allows authorities to futureproof their roadside assets by mitigating against the impact of halogen lamp obsolescence.”

Together, Bristol City Council and Yunex Traffic are demonstrating how targeted investment in existing infrastructure can deliver immediate environmental and operational benefits.  By combining proven technology with local delivery expertise, the project provides a scalable model for other authorities seeking to reduce carbon emissions, lower costs and enhance network reliability – helping to build more sustainable, future-ready cities across the UK.

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