If Greenville citizens notice a difference in the lighting along Arlington Boulevard this winter, city officials want to know.

The Public Works Department, with help from the Greenville Utilities Commission, installed three different types of streetlights between Memorial Drive and Evans Street in late October. Public Works Director Wes Anderson said Wednesday that his office hopes to assess the cost-to-benefit ratio of installing more energy-efficient models across the city.

One brand of light-emitting diode lights — better known as LEDs — starts at Memorial Drive and ends at the intersection with Hooker Road. A second brand stretches from Hooker to the railroad tracks near J.H. Rose High School.

Induction lights have been installed from that railroad track to Evans Street. Anderson said he is not as familiar with the energy savings associated with these long-lasting bulbs.

Anderson said the technology has been available to transform patterns of the diodes into streetlights for some time, but as more manufacturers begin producing the energy-efficient lights the purchasing costs are coming down. While the energy savings are believed to pay back the up-front costs over time, that pay-off period varies.

“We want to save energy, we want to save the environment, but we need to determine what cost is associated with that,” Anderson said.

An Energy Efficiency Conservation Block Grant totaling $770,000 is funding the study. The LED lights lining Arlington cost $21,693 of the $24,000 designated for a pilot program. GUC contributed the labor required for installation.

While the city and GUC consider cost ration and other potential issues, officials invite citizens to examine the color, brightness level and other differences from traditional streetlights.

Most of the lighting across the city is a combination of high- and low-pressure sodium lights, which give off an orange or yellow glow. Metal halide lights are in use in some places, including downtown, because they emit levels more blue-hued and similar to daylight.

People wishing to comment can leave their input at the city's website, www.greenvillenc.gov. Anderson said citizens can leave a message by clicking on the 24/7 Help link and posting a question for Public Works. They can also send a letter by mail to The Public Works Department, 1500 Beatty St., Greenville, NC 27834.

The lights purchased thus far will remain in place regardless of the study's outcome. Anderson said they should last 15 years or more, compared with a lifespan in other models of around five years.