Resources
Funding a smart streetlight project.
Grant programs on both sides of the border fund LED streetlight conversion, and networked controls are usually presented as part of the same energy-saving measure. Here is what applies, what the published savings look like, and how procurement can be shortened.
How do cities fund a smart street lighting project?
Most municipal smart lighting projects are funded by pairing an LED conversion grant with the measured energy savings of the conversion itself, so the controls are paid for inside the same business case as the fixtures.
In Canada the main program is the FCM Green Municipal Fund, alongside provincial programs in Quebec, Ontario and Alberta. In the United States, IIJA infrastructure funding, NYSERDA in New York State and the DOE Better Buildings initiative all reach municipal lighting. Dimonoff prepares the documentation those applications require: the fixture inventory, the projected savings and the technical description of the system. The municipality remains the applicant.
Funding a smart streetlight project.
Programs that apply
Program rules and intake windows change every year, so the list below is a starting point, not an eligibility ruling. Confirm the current rules with the program before building a schedule around it.
- FCM Green Municipal Fund (Canada): federal funding delivered through the Federation of Canadian Municipalities for projects that reduce energy use and emissions, street lighting included.
- Provincial programs in Quebec, Ontario and Alberta: energy-efficiency funding that municipalities combine with the federal envelope.
- IIJA (United States): the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which funds municipal infrastructure including lighting and smart-city systems.
- NYSERDA (New York State): energy-efficiency incentives that reach public lighting.
- DOE Better Buildings (United States): the Department of Energy initiative supporting efficiency projects in public buildings and infrastructure.
What the published savings look like
Published deployments give the order of magnitude an application can be built on. Montréal reported 35% lower energy costs and 55% lower maintenance costs after connecting 132,500 streetlights to one platform. Mississauga cut energy costs by 55% against its 2011 baseline. Laval reports CA$2.75 million a year in savings, 15 million kWh a year, and a five-year payback.
Across projects, the ranges are 50 to 70% energy savings with LED conversion, 30 to 40% fewer truck rolls with remote fault detection, and a typical payback of four to eight years on a combined LED-plus-controls project.
Start with a pilot
A pilot runs three months on 100 to 500 luminaires, with production hardware and a live Dimonoff | SCMS instance. The figures that go into the full-scale application then come from the city’s own network rather than from a brochure.
Shorten procurement
Sourcewell contract 041525-DIMN, open to public agencies in Canada and the United States, and the Canoe Procurement Group of Canada both let an agency buy under a competitively solicited cooperative contract instead of running its own tender. Grant timelines are easier to meet when the procurement step is already done.
Questions about funding
Does a grant cover the controls, or only the LED fixtures?
Rules differ by program. Networked controls are generally presented as part of the energy-saving measure, because dimming, scheduling and fault detection deliver savings beyond the fixture swap. Dimonoff supplies the technical description the application needs; eligibility is confirmed with the program.
What documentation does Dimonoff provide for an application?
A fixture inventory, projected energy and maintenance savings based on the city’s own network, and the technical description of the system. The municipality remains the applicant and files the request.
Can a pilot be run before the full project is funded?
Yes. A three-month pilot on 100 to 500 luminaires, on production hardware and a live platform, produces measured figures, and those figures are what strengthen a full-scale application.
Send us your streetlight inventory.
We will tell you what a pilot on 100 to 500 luminaires would measure, and prepare the documentation your application needs.