Jun 8, 2016 7:00 AM

Gallery: LA’s Using Energy Savings From LED Streetlights to Charge Electric Vehicles

Graham Walzer for WIRED
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After converting to LED streetlights, Los Angeles has excess power capacity, which it's using to charge up electric cars.
Graham Walzer for WIRED
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The extra power was an unintended bonus of the LED switch. “It was totally gravy,” says LA Mayor Eric Garcetti.

Graham Walzer for WIRED
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So far, the city has installed three of those stations, all of them downtown.
Graham Walzer for WIRED
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The Level 2 chargers supply 240 volts and typically provide up to 20 miles of range for every hour you’re plugged in.

Graham Walzer for WIRED
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The project falls under the city’s “Sustainable City pLAn,” which covers everything from cutting water use to bulking up mass transit to easing the cost of housing.
Graham Walzer for WIRED
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LA requires that half of all new light duty city vehicles have a cord, a ratio that climbs to 80 percent in 2025.

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