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PostPosted: Sat Mar 02, 2019 12:43 pm 
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Question 5 on page one of this PDF published on this page on Essex County Council’s web site gives a proposed order of installation for the Phase 3 LED roll-out per local authority area, which was correct at the time of publication in March 2018: Maldon, Harlow, Brentwood, Epping Forest, Braintree, Tendring, Castle Point, Rochford, Basildon, Uttlesford, Chelmsford and lastly Colchester. We should note that A13James has previously reported that Castle Point local authority area was converted to LED in circa. December 2017 with Rochford and Basildon quickly following on, and all three of these local authority areas appear after Tendring on the list - Tendring being the home of Clacton-on-Sea and the nearby towns of Holland-on-Sea, Frinton-on-Sea and Walton-on-the-Naze.


I've been doing a lot of work out in Essex recently and can reveal that although this order is correct, there are still quite a few SOX and SON lanterns which have been missed, even on roads which have undergone LED replacement! All of these lanterns are still standing in 2019:

Harlow:

I noticed three MA50s which had been missed:

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.7539645,0.0927902,3a,17.4y,283.9h,119.7t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s-5RuALeH3qz6anGMMm5X0g!2e0!7i13312!8i6656 This one is being replaced by a Phosco P680, but both lanterns still live on!

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.7558479,0.0907911,3a,17.9y,228.05h,114.31t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sTDU8HDMLMZvYha7M-i8Yjw!2e0!7i13312!8i6656 This MA50 is lighting the entrance road to the Great Parndon Community Hall, so there was perhaps a bit of confusion over ownership on this one!

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.7584312,0.0891165,3a,19.5y,336.59h,105.25t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sJ2t8-2t7LyeO3p9mJ0PqRA!2e0!7i13312!8i6656 This one is still clinging on and is surrounded by LED lanterns (not seen in the Streetview)]

Epping Forest

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.6064387,0.0832018,3a,15.8y,357.77h,103.74t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sjqPrRoN1Fy5wMjvmAqlrZw!2e0!7i16384!8i8192 GEC Z9544 on unsleeved CU concrete column on Fencepiece Road. This lantern is on the border of Epping Forest District Council and the London Borough of Redbridge, which may be what has saved it, although pretty much all SOX lighting has been wiped out in Redbridge, so it's rather odd that this has survived!

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.6085275,0.0825437,3a,43.5y,348.27h,99t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sS6FTcWEP4hg03txQb942IA!2e0!7i16384!8i8192 Another Z9544, this time on a steel Stainton column, randomly missed and still in light! All other columns around it have Philips Digistreets.

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.6092693,0.0823783,3a,45.1y,320.67h,109.61t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sHMOZ67FUixXLagO_qfvIQQ!2e0!7i16384!8i8192An MA90 on an unsleeved CU column, again randomly missed! There are two Digistreets after this, again on unsleeved CU concretes, then:

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.6100198,0.0820153,3a,20.2y,340.62h,101.47t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sO08Lx_oYB3jo7iIYKcMtFg!2e0!7i16384!8i8192An SGS203 on a sleeved concrete and an Iridium on a Stainton column. What might have saved these lanterns from replacement is they are on top of a steep hill - maybe the work crew didn't fancy going up in the cherry picker! Although, if you spin around, they're missing out on a fantastic view across the Thames to Dartford/Erith!

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.64131,0.0838852,3a,40.3y,172.71h,94.06t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sU6ZnFzji0JOj3At0svJksw!2e0!7i16384!8i8192 One double-bracket with MA50s and three Iridiums survive at the junction of Chigwell Lane with the M11. If you spin around, there are a couple of flat-glass SGS203s as well! These being on a motorway junction may have caused confusion between Epping Forest and Highways Agency ownership, although other junctions on the M11 are LED-lit!

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.6349876,0.0869024,3a,17.6y,249.56h,103.87t/data=!3m8!1e1!3m6!1sZE8BgnSeIxZD8hu7vU23bA!2e0!5s20170801T000000!6s%2F%2Fgeo0.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3DZE8BgnSeIxZD8hu7vU23bA%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26thumb%3D2%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D209.49428%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100!7i16384!8i8192 An Arc, only installed in 2017 when the junction was realigned, survives at Rolls Park Corner on the edge of Debden.

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.6431244,0.0836031,3a,19.2y,65.62h,94.45t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sYKYTgjEuBPdtzxItXf3P1g!2e0!5s20170801T000000!7i16384!8i8192Epping Forest Shopping Park has retained all its Arcs, which, again, were only installed in 2017 and are original to the shopping park.

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.6467131,0.0812222,3a,16.4y,52.77h,98.82t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sReRXV5qFMD4D_wGvGo5GAg!2e0!5s20170801T000000!7i16384!8i8192 Double-bracket SGS203s have survived both road widening in 2017 and LED replacement in 2018! Debden Broadway still retains it fancy lighting too!

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.647267,0.0804595,3a,18.8y,247.88h,114.34t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1slIiUKQFdSZw8fiZw7QV4rw!2e0!5s20170801T000000!7i16384!8i8192Another 2017 Arc missed, just diagonally across the junction from the SGS203s above!

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.6497511,0.0786588,3a,24.9y,125.13h,114.15t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sjaU0FfxTnOVRx4Q0ifgxkQ!2e0!5s20170801T000000!7i16384!8i8192 An MA90 on an unsleeved CU concrete column. The replacement column has been there for about 10 years and originally had an MA50 installed, but never connected up. The old column was still in light before the LED lantern came along as well!

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.6519603,0.0764725,3a,17.3y,332.36h,102.99t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sKUY1gwbmoSftfBROWLSW1A!2e0!5s20170801T000000!7i16384!8i8192A Phosco P567, which was a casual replacement for an MA50 a few years ago, still survives! Quite a few of these have been missed across the borough!

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.6560701,0.0668026,3a,15.5y,61.32h,109.02t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sB1ewSPbvWvPxJFKtUN_GVA!2e0!5s20170801T000000!7i16384!8i8192 An SGS203, which has turned on its bracket, survives opposite Loughton Homebase.

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.6590049,0.0670502,3a,20y,24.21h,108.14t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1so_WcYpBqSvuUqftfVlvYag!2e0!5s20180401T000000!7i16384!8i8192An MA50 on Golding's Hill is still soldiering on in 2019 and it's still in light! There is quite a steep embankment behind the column, which is probably what has given the lantern its salvation!

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.6618018,0.0663463,3a,20.6y,359.94h,113.39t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sY9Ao4U-TtzpCMUnVFqK7fA!2e0!5s20180401T000000!7i16384!8i8192 Another further along!

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.6604229,0.0669473,3a,15y,8.08h,127.8t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1stJ6A5RDRfE-dE5ZO9b394g!2e0!5s20180401T000000!7i16384!8i8192 This GR101, on a badly leaning column which looks to have been hit by a vehicle, has been standing here for a number of years, despite a replacement column (originally carrying an Iridium) being installed and in light for several years before the Digistreet came along!

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.6995856,0.1119916,3a,15y,236.73h,93.87t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sSsf67QFkcHqAcyZ87xtK6A!2e0!5s20180401T000000!7i13312!8i6656This very lonely-looking Iridium lighting a layby on Epping High Street is still here! This stretch of road is lit by SON floodlights installed on the buildings, which also still live on and are in light!

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.6558581,0.0389393,3a,31.6y,154.11h,113.24t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1s0aEyIh4k2zVtCRYcq4xY6A!2e0!6s%2F%2Fgeo3.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3D0aEyIh4k2zVtCRYcq4xY6A%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26thumb%3D2%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D234.96219%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100!7i16384!8i8192 A single SGS203 has escaped replacement on Cross Roads, just before the Robin Hood Roundabout.

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.7129875,0.162087,3a,17.2y,352.93h,110.93t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s-F63o2h75kZcLM-GIX_WpQ!2e0!7i13312!8i6656Another SGS203 has been missed before a mini roundabout in North Weald.

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.6485342,0.0553475,3a,15.1y,30.21h,97.39t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sg96sPwRuIasfb9Qj1Yggow!2e0!7i16384!8i8192 This Eleco HW509 in this council car park still lives on!

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.6429153,0.0542229,3a,15y,346.85h,99.94t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1shkulkXBmYgOcgpw2cMUSyw!2e0!6s%2F%2Fgeo0.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3DhkulkXBmYgOcgpw2cMUSyw%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26thumb%3D2%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D12.195924%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100!7i16384!8i8192 This Eleco HW509 is also still kicking, as are the Urbis Saturns on the curvy columns behind!

Brentwood:

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.6173473,0.2918314,3a,42.7y,163h,113.15t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1syCDcSbORjGrIHB44DuUrhg!2e0!6s%2F%2Fgeo0.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3DyCDcSbORjGrIHB44DuUrhg%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26thumb%3D2%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D73.84601%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100!7i13312!8i6656 A GEC Z9454 and an MA50 live on at the beginning of Hubert Road, a side road leading into an industrial estate, which has probably saved these from replacement.

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.6204931,0.2991252,3a,49.2y,49.22h,105.89t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sictywWVxYhfNVe9hS_5o2g!2e0!7i13312!8i6656 A GEC Z9554 and SGS203s still survive in the William Hunter Way car park.


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PostPosted: Sat Apr 27, 2019 1:34 pm 
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Location: Colchester, Essex
Thank you Phosco152 and A13James for your kind comments  :)

In February 2019, David wrote:
Last on the list is Colchester. It is very generous that ECC have left my home town to last  :lol: . Phase 1 (the LED trial in the town centre and the town centre approach roads) and Phase 2 (all full-night lighting units) are both complete, but I am almost certainly sure that Colchester has yet to see any Phase 3 works. The town is still seeing new LED casual replacements as and when old SOX and SON bulbs expire, but this is a slow process.

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Phase 3 of the LED roll-out is yet to reach Colchester, lanterns with expired bulbs are likely to be replaced with a new LED lantern when the street lighting crew visit the column. Pictured above is Highwoods Approach in Colchester last month (January 2019).

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Highwoods Approach as photographed last Sunday (21st April 2019). Philips DigiStreet Micro lanterns have been fitted.

Phase 3 of Essex County Council’s LED roll-out (to replace large-wattage part-night lighting) has now hit Colchester in a big way. I first noticed that the roll-out had reached Colchester about six weeks ago (17th March 2019) when Axial Way – a road opened in circa. 2010 – had been converted from the original installation of flat glass SGS203s to Philips DigiStreet Minis.

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Axial Way, Colchester, also photographed last weekend (21st April 2019).

Six weeks later, there is now very little in the way of large-wattage discharge lighting left in the town. Numerous vintage large wattage lanterns from manufacturers such as Eleco, GEC, Philips, Phosco, Siemens and Thorn have been swept away. I believe there are just five Atlas / Thorn Alpha Ones left in the town (we had up to 10 times that many a few weeks ago), and two Thorn Alpha Sixes remain. The few remaining Phosco P156s and P157s have now gone. The two Thorn Alpha Sixes escape for now as I believe they are under the control of Highways England, but the Alpha Ones are all Essex County Council and will be gone soon.

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Via Urbis Romanae, otherwise known as the A134 Colchester Northern Approach Road and opened in 2012, as photographed last weekend (21st April 2019). It is an example of one of the few remaining large roads in Colchester that has not had all of its street lighting fully converted to LED (the lighting either side of this junction is now lit with Philips DigiStreet Mini lanterns).

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An older section of the A134 Colchester Northern Approach Road opened in 2003 and was originally lit with Philips MA50s. It is now lit with Philips DigiStreet Mini lanterns, with the occasional Philips Luma Midi casual replacements from an earlier time.

This road is typical of many main roads in Colchester right now. The only large-wattage discharge lighting that remains in Colchester can often only be found in awkward locations, e.g. adjacent to traffic islands where parking the van would force traffic to pass the island on the wrong side of the road.

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Westway is also part of the A134 and is also awaiting conversion to LED, making it one of the last sites in Colchester with large-wattage discharge lighting. This photograph was taken last Saturday (20th April 2019).

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Colchester North Station’s “hamburger” roundabout, which is also part of the A134, offers a solace of SON in the road that cuts through the middle. This photograph was also taken last Saturday (20th April 2019).

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Phase 1 versus Phase 3: Phase 1 of Essex County Council’s LED roll-out (trial sites) used Schreder Amperas in Colchester and Phase 3 is using Philips DigiStreets.

In Colchester, the Philips Luma was used in phase 2 of the roll-out (large-wattage all-night lighting) and the Philips Luma and occasionally the ASD Highway Diamond Elite have been used for casual replacements.

In February 2019, David wrote:
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Although lanterns with expired bulbs are likely to be replaced with a new LED lantern, many locations in Colchester still have well-maintained and unbroken installations of SOX street lighting, e.g. in Circular Road South pictured above on Tuesday evening (12th February 2019). Nothing is out of light in this photograph.

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Circular Road South as photographed last weekend (21st April 2019). Philips DigiStreet Mini lanterns have been fitted.

In this LED roll-out which is for all large-wattage part-night lighting (Essex County Council phase 3), 8m columns in Colchester have had both Philips DigiStreet Mini (BGP761) and DigiStreet Micro (BGP760) lanterns fitted whereas 10m columns have had Philips DigiStreet Mini lanterns fitted. I would assume the choice as to which lantern is fitted on 8m columns is taken based on location and / or traffic volumes. There are some streets on Phase 3 of the roll-out which have columns at 12m, and these may have the DigiStreet Medium (BGP762) if the DigiStreet Mini is too much of a stretch.

In the Lighting in films and on TV thread, David wrote:
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A second example of SOX against a blue dusk sky. These are old-style Philips MA90s (with the streamline shoe) in Mason Road, Colchester photographed in December 2017.

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Mason Road, Colchester, as photographed last weekend (21st April 2019). Four MA90 stragglers remain in this view, although only two are in light. This industrial estate has had Philips DigiStreet Micro lanterns fitted.

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The same scene at night, also photographed last weekend (21st April 2019).

In March 2015, David wrote:
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Many Alpha Ones will also be lost in the LED trial. The Atlas Alpha One was launched in 1955 and the Urbis Ampera was launched 56 years later in 2011, so it's quite a juxtaposition to see lanterns from such different eras sharing the same street.

Colchester's Alpha Ones have certainly aged well and still look as good as they did in their 1970s heyday. I'm unlikely to be around in 56 years time to see if the Urbis Ampera equals the Alpha One's production longevity and long service life.

As there are only five left (to my almost certain knowledge), here is a quick review of Colchester’s last Alpha Ones before they bite the dust...

In March 2018, David wrote:
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Back in the 1960s, or possibly the late-1950s, Cowdray Avenue was relit with a seemingly unending installation of Atlas / Thorn Alpha Ones. They were all sleeved in the 1970s. This is the only one left.

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This Alpha One has a stay of execution thanks to the traffic island in front of it. As of this month, there are just three of Cowdray Avenue’s original concrete columns still in situ. The rest of Cowdray Avenue has been widened / improved / altered for junction access in the last circa. 40 years. This photograph and the next three photographs were taken last weekend (21st April 2019).

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Unusually, this lantern’s Telensa Telecell is mounted on the side of the shoe. The Telecell replaced a two-part cell that for some unknown reason, was drilled into the side of the Alpha One instead of the top when the time clocks were removed in the 1980s.

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The Alpha One in Cowdray Avenue is the closest one to my home in Colchester town centre, so an evening walk to see it switch on seemed in order last Sunday evening (21st April 2019).

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As of this month (April 2019), there are just three SOX lanterns left in Cowdray Avenue – the original Alpha One and two Philips MA90 casual replacements. They are all adjacent to each other. Ironically, the Alpha One is still in light but the MA90s are out of light.

In February 2019, David wrote:
Colchester still has a small population of Thorn Alpha Ones. As Clacton-on-Sea is about to lose its last Alpha One, I hope Colchester’s Alpha Ones remain in service until at least the LED roll-out arrives.
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Pictured above are two Alpha Ones in the Parsons Heath area of the town, photographed in January 2018.

One of this pair of Alpha Ones was lost in recent months as a result of a column removal or knockdown. The column is still to be replaced.

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The other Alpha One is still in place, but it is on borrowed time. This photograph and the next two photographs were taken on 21st April 2019.

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Further up the road and in the background of the above image, a short section of this road (the A137 at Parsons Heath) still remains to be converted to LED.

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A photograph of nearby unclassified St. John’s Road in Colchester. These columns were probably erected in the 1960s (else the late 1950s), were sleeved in the 1970s with their original Alpha One lanterns retained (as they were still relatively new back then), had their Alpha Ones replaced with flat glass Philips SGS203s in the 1990s and have now had their SGS203s replaced with Philips DigiStreet Minis in the 2010s.

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The third Alpha One still installed in Colchester (as of this week) is also on the A137, but on Harwich Road near its junction with Goring Road. The rest of the road is now lit with Philips DigiStreet Mini lanterns. This photograph and the next photograph were taken on 21st April 2019.

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If you are wondering why the opticell looks so white, it is because the reflective plate has been dislodged. It’s a sight that we used to see once in a while in the past, but we won’t be seeing again on British streets.

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The fourth Alpha One is on the unclassified Fingringhoe Road on the south east corner of Colchester. The rest of the road is now lit with Philips DigiStreet Mini lanterns. This photograph was taken on 21st April 2019.

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The last of the five Alpha Ones still installed in Colchester is inexplicably mounted somewhere near 10 metres mounting height on the B1022 Shrub End Road. This photograph and the next photograph were taken on 21st April 2019.

In the 1980s, most of Shrub End Road was lit with Alpha Ones mounted at 10 metres, but these have given way to knockdowns and casual replacements over the years. The only explanation I have for this is that when the columns were sleeved in the 1970s, the opportunity was taken to increase the mounting height of the lanterns from 8 to 10 metres with a double sleeve, but the Alpha Ones were not changed over to more suitable 135W lanterns.

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This road is unusually wide in places and the other remaining concrete columns on the road are also double-sleeved up to 10 metres. The rest of the road is now lit with Philips DigiStreet Mini lanterns.

Having reviewed that Alpha Ones that are still extant in Colchester as of April 2019, here is a review of the few Alpha Sixes that have been lost in recent weeks and the two that are still extant.

In March 2012, David wrote:
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The A12 southbound on-slip has three Alpha Sixes. Two of them are the first and fourth lanterns in this photo from 2008.

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How the slip road looks in 2012...for the time being at least. One GR150 on a sleeved concrete column has given way to an SGS203 on an octagonal column.

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The A12 southbound on-slip has just been converted to Philips DigiStreet Minis with this one 135W SOX MA50 straggler at the end. The straggler may be under the control of Highways England. This photograph was taken in April 2019.

In March 2012, David wrote:
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Here's how the Alpha Six on column two looked in 2008.

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Fast forward to yesterday and it's still hanging on, albeit having gathered a little more moss in the last four years! The tree is a little taller and the telegraph pole has lost its weather coating.
Sadly the above Alpha Six, on Station Road, Mark’s Tey, has also been changed to a Philips DigiStreet Mini lantern in April 2019.

Thankfully there are two Thorn Alpha Sixes that will avoid the Essex County Council cull as they are under the ownership of Highways England. One is on the Prince of Wales roundabout and the other is on the short section of dual carriageway linking both roundabouts that form each side of junction 25 of the A12. Pictures of the Prince of Wales roundabout were included in my post from February 2019.

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The one remaining Thorn Alpha Six on the Prince of Wales roundabout in Mark’s Tey on the outskirts of Colchester pictured here adjacent to an ELECO GR150 and a Thorn Alpha Four, which are both day burning. This photograph and the next three photographs were taken in April 2019.

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A photograph of the roundabout’s Alpha Six in isolation.

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Although the Alpha Six does not day burn, it does switch on earlier than the other correctly functioning lanterns on the roundabout. Here the Alpha Six is in the back of the above photograph.

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A closer view of the Alpha Six on the Prince of Wales roundabout at dusk.

In March 2012, David wrote:
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One end of the short section of A120 dual carriageway that links both sides of the A12 together at Junction 25. Photograph taken in 2008. The first lantern on the left (which has turned on its spigot) is an Alpha Six, the lantern on the right at the back of the picture (on the parallel road) is also an Alpha Six and the two brackets with missing lanterns are Alpha Sixes with snapped spines.

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The same scene yesterday (22nd March 2012). I thought it would never happen, but the Highways Agency are replacing the sleeved concrete columns, which seem to have stood there for an eternity. Even the double bracket that was missing its Alpha Six for at least four years (it previously lit the A12 northbound on-slip) is now back in light.

The following four photographs were taken in April 2019. It should be noted that the Highways Agency only replaced some of their sleeved concrete columns back in 2012, hence these six sleeved concrete survivors on the bridge parapet in the photograph above and the numerous sleeved concretes on the Prince of Wales roundabout live on to this day!

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A close-up image of the second of the two last remaining Alpha Sixes in Colchester. The lantern is still turned on its spigot, hence it is possible to capture this side profile image of the lantern.

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The Alpha Six lantern at switch-on.

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The Alpha Six and its near neighbours on the dual carriageway above the A12 at Junction 25. In this photograph, the Alpha Six is warming up.

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One last photograph from Junction 25 on the A12. The Highways England dual carriageway which can be seen the background of this photograph remains as SOX for the time being, whereas the Essex County Council controlled lighting on the southbound slip road in the foreground of this photograph has been changed to LED.

My travels through Essex routinely take me through around half of the county's other boroughs and districts, and as of April 2019 there is now very little Essex County controlled large-wattage SOX left, including in areas that were left to the end of the LED roll-out, e.g. Chelmsford and Colchester. As Ro Jo Jnr notes above, there are still plenty of stragglers about which will surely be picked off in the next few weeks or months.

In summary, if you want to see good-sized large-wattage SOX in Essex from now on, it’s now best to look in locations managed by Highways England


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PostPosted: Sun Apr 28, 2019 9:32 am 
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Sad times indeed! I've been admiring Essex for many years for the huge amount of discontinued lanterns it's had, but to see them now disappear so quickly and aggressively is heartbreaking! The policy of keeping high-wattage SOX lanterns around crossings is very interesting though, since I thought the LED lanterns would do a much better job of lighting the crossing and make it a lot easier for drivers to see pedestrians with their near-daylight output. Still, if it means that some Alpha 1s are being kept, then I'm all for it!

Also, massive kudos to Highways England for continuing to maintain the lighting around the Prince of Wales Roundabout, especially those two Alpha 6s!


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PostPosted: Tue Jul 02, 2019 2:17 pm 
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I spotted a few more stragglers in Braintree today:

Three MA90s in a row on Railway Street. These have probably survived due to being quite close to the windows of some blocks of flats - maybe there was a worry that the windows might accidentally get smashed by the cherry picker? This must look very bizarre at night though, as the other side of the road has had its MAs casually replaced with Lumas and all installations behind are now Digistreets.

This SGS203 on the corner of Railway Street and Trinovantian Way. All other installations behind it are now Digistreets.

South Street retains its SGS203s for now

From a distance, it looked as if this MA90 is still standing


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PostPosted: Sun Jan 19, 2020 2:53 am 
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In December 2014, David wrote:
Some unexpected news from the greensward on Clacton sea front, which until a few days ago was the home of about 1.5 miles' worth of ultra-rare top-entry GEC Z8430CMs (please correct me if the top entry version had a different code). The lanterns have been removed as the cast iron decorative brackets they are installed on pose a risk to public health:
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Daily Gazette, 24th December 2014
Full report and more pictures here.
In December 2014, Phosco152 wrote:
Yet another load of absolute tosh in the name of "elf and safety". The council have (mandatory) civil liability insurance to cover any injury to the public from failures of their own infrastructure, yet they still spout on about H&S.

As the pictures show, each part of the decorative metal work is held to the column in multiple places so the chances of a single piece corroding through and falling are practically non existent.

The columns are probably late Victorian yet have withstood the 1987 "hurricane" as well as all of last winter's storms without any damage.

The decorative metal work although with some flaking paint and surface corrosion, looks to be in good condition on the example photographed. Cast iron has a low corrosion propagation rate (slower than mild steel) and the level of deterioration looks to be minimal and only to be expected after decades since the last repaint.

I very much doubt that the "survey" was done at bracket level on each column - more likely photographs were taken from the ground.

Even worse is the "vandalism" in the way the metal work has been removed in sections by cutting through with an angle grinder, which is a non precision cutting tool. 2-3mm of metal will have been lost in each cut making it impossible to dimensionally accurately reassemble the parts - not that cast iron can be successfully welded back together anyway. It would have been far better to cut the entire top of the column off, removing the bracket section with a crane, so that the metal work could be repaired intact. A discrete sleeve and internal tube could then be used to reattach it at a later date.

All the council now have is a skip full of cut up sections, which probably haven't been catalogued from individual columns - so just a jumble of what is now in effect scrap.

I would like to be proved wrong, but I doubt the original metal work will now ever be repaired and refitted. More than likely replacement steel "faux heritage" brackets will be fitted with "Albany" type lanterns.

In this day and age there is really no excuse for such blatant destruction of the town's heritage.

In February 2015, David wrote:
In December 2014, David wrote:
Although the newspaper report states that the lighting on the sea front hasn't worked for at least 15 years, my memory cannot confirm this. This length of time came as a bit of a surprise to me, as I would have imagined the council (Tendring District Council in this case, not Essex County Council) would have kept them in light due to the greensward being up to 30m wide in some places, meaning the lighting on the adjacent road along the sea front would not stretch far enough to light the popular and well-used clifftop path.

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Thankfully a dig around in my own photo archive revealed this photograph of the clifftop path in January 1995. The Revo Clactons and top-entry GEC Z8430CMs are shown in light. As the lanterns had always ran mercury, I think the rogue SON lamp persuaded me to stop and take this photograph.

With the exception of the rogue SON lamp, this is how Clacton's clifftop path should be lit! For Clacton's sake, I do hope we'll see this sight again one day, but I concede that the mercury lighting won't be returning. A suitable while-light alternative would be fine.

The same scene, on Clacton's East Greensward, today:
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Photograph taken 20 years later, in January 2015. All the photographs below were taken in January and February 2015.

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Clacton's West Greensward (the subject of the original newspaper report above) fares no better.

But to my great surprise, the ornate brackets and ultra-rare top-entry GEC Z8430CM lanterns on three of the historic columns have escaped the disc cutter of doom, and survive for now:

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Three of the columns located in and around the Clacton Pavilion entertainment and amusement centre, to the immediate east of Clacton Pier, retain their ornate brackets and Z8430CMs (where lanterns were still surviving in the first place).

Sadly, I think the reason they survive for now is that they are currently inaccessible to the cherry picker while the Clacton Pavilion and surrounding area undergo redevelopment for the 2015 summer season. But that shouldn't be an excuse to publish a few more photos of the remnant of a once magnificent installation:

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There is now only one unspoilt installation left (i.e. no missing lanterns and no missing bowls), and it is to the left side of Pier Gap as you approach Clacton Pier from the town centre.
Full report and more pictures here.

Note in particular Phosco152's comments, when he called out Tendring District Council for their lack of competence:


"Even worse is the "vandalism" in the way the metal work has been removed in sections by cutting through with an angle grinder, which is a non precision cutting tool. 2-3mm of metal will have been lost in each cut making it impossible to dimensionally accurately reassemble the parts - not that cast iron can be successfully welded back together anyway. It would have been far better to cut the entire top of the column off, removing the bracket section with a crane, so that the metal work could be repaired intact. A discrete sleeve and internal tube could then be used to reattach it at a later date.

All the council now have is a skip full of cut up sections, which probably haven't been catalouged from individual columns - so just a jumble of what is now in effect scrap.

I would like to be proved wrong, but I doubt the original metal work will now ever be repaired and refitted. More than likely replacement steel "faux heritage" brackets will be fitted with "Albany" type lanterns."



Having noted Phosco152's comments, click on this story which has recently broke on the Clacton Gazette website. A local resident has expressed anger after he spotted the removed lanterns languishing in a local scrap yard. It appears that the Council have waved the white flag after being quoted an extortionate price for restoration. To quote the newspaper article:


"At the time, Tendring Council assured residents the decorative features would be stored carefully until they could decide how best to repair or restore them.

But at a meeting last September, council leader Neil Stock conceded the dismantled parts were not fit for repair or reuse having suffered severe corrosion.

He did, however, say it would be possible to take moulds of the remaining lamp heads for a potential restoration project but at a cost of £300,000 per column."



It is beyond my comprehension as to how each bracket's restoration would have costed circa. £300,000 per column. I'm sure the legendary Brian Wilde (A.C. Ford) wouldn't have charged anywhere near that much to attempt to restore all of them or - perhaps the better solution - create all the moulds needed for one dimensionally identical new bracket and cast a number of brand new brackets from it. After all, these "REVO Clacton" brackets were not original to the columns (see Mikey Ashworth's REVO Clacton advert from 1938 on Flickr).

It is understood that the columns were installed in circa. 1912 according to the Listed Building entries of those columns that are listed (here and here). To see what the original brackets on these columns looked like, see this image from this web site.

Furthermore, the Council already has experience in restoring these brackets - as they did it in the 1990s...
In February 2015, David wrote:
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As described in my original post on the subject, the gardens to the immediate west of Clacton Pier were revamped many years ago, and the Z8430CMs were replaced with heritage lanterns.

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A night-time view of the above scene shows these columns in light, but running SON lanterns.

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A close up view of the heritage lanterns, which we may see used again when the recently removed brackets are refurbished and reinstalled by the local council.

The 1930s REVO C6200 lanterns were of course removed in the 1960s and replaced with the top-entry GEC Z8430CMs. The newspaper report quotes an unnamed Council spokesperson firstly claiming that the brackets were modified in the 1960s to accommodate the Z8430CMs which meant they were not original any more, before contradicting himself in the next sentence by stating that one of the original brackets has been retained so that a moulding can be taken if and when funding can be secured to restore them.

I wondered what this adaption was. Perhaps the 1930s REVO C6200 lanterns were gas lanterns, and that the brackets had to be modified in the 1960s to accommodate electric street lighting. But it would have been highly unusual for the "The REVO Electric Company" to make a gas lantern!

The only adaption I can possibly think of would not have changed the bracket in any way. All that happened was that the vertical threaded barrel nipple that connected the REVO C6200 to the "Clacton" bracket was replaced with a new barrel nipple with a small dog leg in it to allow the top-entry Z8430CM to be installed with the base of the canopy in a horizontal alignment. Compare the above photograph of the 1990s restoration (which has vertical threaded barrel nipples reinstated) with the photograph below of the 1960s installation with the dog-legged barrel nipple.
In December 2014, David wrote:
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As far as I can tell, the 1930s "REVO Clacton" brackets were not changed at all in the 1960s!

I can argue these points, but it doesn't make a jot of difference to what appears to have been a poor effort all-round, and a sad loss to Clacton's heritage.


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PostPosted: Sun Jan 19, 2020 8:55 pm 
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Typical council incompetence.

Ironically the bits which ended up in the scrapyard are the least critical for any restoration - its the brackets which are important.

More incompetence with the £300k per column quote. There are specialists in this field of restoration and if their prices were in that league, they would be out of business.

It does seem that local residents and the council need to be better informed. However given the number of columns and the scale of restoration needed (reconstruct from scratch), the total cost could still end up being at least a 5 figure sum. It doesn't look good, an in situ repair/restoration would have have been so much cheaper, but its too late.


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PostPosted: Wed Feb 19, 2020 6:04 pm 
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Suffolk is potentially going to go all LED:

Quote:
Suffolk's streetlights could be all-LED by 2022 if proposals are approved

PUBLISHED: 18:47 17 February 2020 | UPDATED: 10:38 18 February 2020 Matthew Earth

A £9.8million project could turn all of Suffolk's street lights LED - reducing the county's carbon footprint.

Suffolk County Council's (SCC) cabinet will meet next Tuesday to discuss the proposal, which would see more than 40,000 of Suffolk's street lights replaced with more energy efficient LEDs.

The proposal was put forward by Andrew Reid, Suffolk County Council's cabinet member for highways, transport and rural affairs, in response to the expected rise of energy prices of between 8% and 12% per year. If approved, the street lights throughout Suffolk could all be LEDs by autumn 2022.

There are currently more than 60,000 street lights in the county, which SCC are responsible for maintaining. In 2010, SCC took steps to help reduce both the energy costs and carbon footprint of its lighting stock - including switching off some lights at night. As part of the move, LED street lights have already replaced a number of the units in the county that used the most energy.

As well as the significant reduction in energy they consume, LED lights are also much brighter. LEDs can also be dimmed at certain times, allowing for huge savings in energy costs. SCC say the change will ensure Suffolk remains unaffected by any future energy price hikes.

Mr Reid said: "We recognise the importance of our environment in Suffolk and the impacts of climate change. Where possible, we want to ensure that we protect and enhance the natural environment, decrease carbon emissions and reduce the use of scarce resources, for the well-being of future generations and the natural world. Initiatives such as this are important in helping us to achieve that aim. We will be replacing almost 43,000 lights with new energy saving LED lanterns. This will save approximately 60% of our current energy bill, which can invested elsewhere. We will be able to reduce our carbon usage by around 80%, benefitting residents throughout Suffolk."


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PostPosted: Sun Apr 05, 2020 1:23 pm 
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sotonsteve wrote:
Suffolk is potentially going to go all LED

It is especially surprising to note that quite a bit of Suffolk is still on power-hungry 80W mercury, although I suspect a lot of this is Parish Council lighting. Even as recently as last year (the last time I had cause to visit Suffolk on a few occasions) there were a few towns and villages that I drove through that still had decent-sized housing estates lit with MBF-U, e.g. in parts of Great Cornard and Bury St. Edmunds. Furthermore, some estates' installations were also relatively unspoilt, i.e. just like in Frinton-on-Sea, the Council had gone out of their way over many years to stick to the original light source, e.g. by picking Davis, Phosco, Siemens and Thorn post-tops in lieu of the equivalent but discontinued Eleco (popular in Suffolk) and GEC post-tops.

Now that Frinton-on-Sea's mercury stock has been decimated Suffolk will, for a short time, be the closest location to north Essex to see good quantities of mercury street lighting still in nightly use.


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PostPosted: Sun Apr 05, 2020 2:49 pm 
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Noting Phosco152's quite correct comments about Clacton sea front's top-entry GEC Z8430CMs turning up in a scrap yard, trip to Clacton-on-Sea shortly after the scrap yard story broke suggested to me that all may not be lost should Tendring District Council attempt to restore or replicate the REVO Clacton brackets at some point in the future. Two of the retrofit brackets, as installed in the 1930s, look to be intact with the exception of the decorative copper "hats" on the top of the columns.

To quickly recap the situation, many of the Edwardian columns were stripped of their 1930s retrofit "REVO Clacton" brackets and their 1960s retrofit top-entry GEC Z8430CMs in 2014, and these were put into storage for future restoration, but the top-entry GEC Z8430CMs along with the original decorative mounting finials (as cut off the end of the REVO Clacton brackets) turned up for sale in a local scrap yard two months ago.

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Two of the Grade II listed columns on Clacton sea front, as installed in circa. 1912, still retain their 1930s REVO Clacton brackets. All the photographs below except the last three were taken in February 2020.

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A close-up of one of the two remaining REVO Clacton brackets. Of the two remaining brackets, the one closest to Clacton Pier retains both of its mercury-running top-entry Z8430CMs, albeit the column is disconnected from the power supply.

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For the information of anyone planning to visit Clacton-on-Sea in the near future (noting that may not be possible due to coronavirus), this one remaining complete installation is on the top of the cliff to the immediate left of the entrance to Clacton Pier as you look out to sea. Any street lighting enthusiast visiting the region for a more extended stay may wish to consider a stay at the nearby Naze Marine Holiday Park in Walton-on-the-Naze with its fabulous installation of local authority-spec mercury-running Z8430CMs on 8m Concrete Utilities Avenue 3DNN columns.

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Furthermore, the surviving original REVO Clacton brackets are in plain sight of the 1990s restoration of the same brackets on the columns next to the Victorian gardens to the west of Clacton Pier.

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These photographs show that, apart from the powdercoating which appears to have faded rather quickly, the 1990s restoration was pretty much perfect. Even the lanterns are a good fit under the circumstances, with the "trumpet flare" of the canopy faithfully following the line of the bracket decoration.

In February 2015, David wrote:
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A close up view of the heritage lanterns, which we may see used again when the recently removed brackets are refurbished and reinstalled by the local council.

I expressed surprise in my original post (December 2014) that the Z8430CMs had not been in light for "at least the past 15 years", according to the newspaper report. That would have meant they hadn't been in light since at least 1999. The other day I found this newspaper cutting from February 2006 – less than nine years before the brackets were chopped:

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This report states that "a number of the lights" had not been working since at least October 2005 creating "dark areas" along the top promenade. This suggests to me that the lighting was clearly failing around this time, but also that a number of the lanterns were still in light, else the local councillor would have reported that the top promenade was in complete darkness!

Noting that the brackets were chopped just under nine years later (in December 2014), the article suggests the lighting failed altogether or was intentionally disconnected from the power supply either in 2006 or shortly afterwards. This is more in keeping with my own thoughts as to the length of time the lanterns had been out of light, i.e. comfortably under 10 years, and certainly not 15 years or more.

So what would these ultra-rare mercury-running top-entry Z8430CMs look like if they were in light?

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This "day burning" photograph was taken in February 2020, but it is sadly nothing more than an optical illusion – in this case the light of a low winter sun is pouring into the side of the lanterns' bowls. This is the only real photograph I have of these lanterns in light, from 25 years ago:

In December 2014, David wrote:
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Thankfully a dig around in my own photo archive revealed this photograph of the clifftop path in January 1995. The Revo Clactons and top-entry GEC Z8430CMs are shown in light. As the lanterns had always ran mercury, I think the rogue SON lamp persuaded me to stop and take this photograph.

Being a collector of old street lights, and noting that the top-entry Z8430CM was an intergral part of Clacton sea front for many years but were rarely installed elsewhere around the country, I had resigned myself to the fact that the closest I would get to owning one would be obtaining an example of the far more popular side-entry version (also popular in Clacton), and this was fulfilled when Harrison Lighting discovered some unsold stock of these back in 2009 (along with some REVO Prefects if I recall correctly). This never-installed example entered into the collection accordingly:

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A new old stock GEC Z8430CM purchased from Harrison Lighting in May 2009. This photograph was taken in July 2010.

Imagine my surprise when 10 years later, I was contacted out of the blue by the legendary rescuer of old street lights John Thompson who had spotted that three top-entry Z8430CMs were being sold by someone who lived in my home town of Colchester. My immediate fear was that these three lanterns were the three that appear in the first picture of this post, but this was thankfully not the case and street lighting enthusiasts can still enjoy seeing at least three top-entry Z8430CMs installed along Clacton sea front to this day. John was successful in his endeavours and I was able to collect the lanterns a few days later.

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Three top-entry Z8430CMs obtained by John Thompson last year. Photograph taken in May 2019. I understand that they used to be installed on the side of, or inside a warehouse on Ipswich docks over the border in Suffolk.

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Although I purchased "lantern 3" in the photograph above from John (unlike the other two, it look liked it had been stored in a ditch!), it cleaned up really well, and it is fabulous to have another jigsaw piece from Clacton’s rich lighting history in the collection. This photograph was taken in June 2019.

And back in Clacton itself, it is also great to report that all is not lost – Tendring District Council have two intact original “REVO Clacton” brackets that they can reference in any future restoration of the brackets that were removed in 2014, and these are also in plain sight of a faithful earlier restoration of identical brackets undertaken by the Council in the 1990s.


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PostPosted: Sun Apr 05, 2020 5:32 pm 
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Good to hear from you again David and get an update on the Clacton saga. How appropriate for you to finally get a top entry lantern.

It looks like the council let the installations fall into disrepair as maintenance became "all too difficult" following their listing. I doubt if the use of power hungry mercury lamps helped their cause either. Does Historic England know what has happened to them?

The columns are probably structurally sound - cast iron survives far better in a seaside environment than steel columns. It needs a proper expert to carry out a survey rather than just relying on the say so of the council or their contractors.

As the 1990 replicas show, new brackets could be made - there are plenty of firms specialising in this work. Add a LED heritage lantern and media blast and repaint the columns and they would look very smart.

Perhaps with nothing else happening in the near future, its time to utilise the power of social media and for someone to set up a petition to restore Clacton's heritage. Coupled with a ground funding initiative to fund the works. It would bring back a bit of civic pride to the town.


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