Plan to change Westminster’s historic gas street lights to LEDs not popular

Two centuries after the first gas lights appeared on the streets of London, a few hundred remain in historic areas of the capital.

However, Westminster city council is planning to convert 299 gas lights to electricity, saying LED lights are environmentally better and easier to maintain.

The plan is opposed by a group of residents who claim the council’s reasons are 'spurious', The Guardian reports.

The council says its replacement LED lights 'replicate the aesthetic of the gas lighting and do not significantly alter the look and feel of the area'.