Residential Street Lighting
The City of Cedar Rapids adopted a Complete Streets Policy with specifications for installation of street lights in July 2014. The policy requires all new street lights to be LED and they shall be installed utilizing a modification of the Statewide Urban Design Standards Manual for street lighting (Chapter 11). The policy also specifies approved pole types for specific land uses and street functional classifications to maintain consistency throughout the City.
Upon request for a street light, the proposed location is reviewed and compared to surrounding street lights in the area to see if another street light may be added, meeting the spacing requirements. If a street light may be added, a petition will be sent to the requestor to be signed by the residents affected by the street light. If an existing utility pole may be used to install the street light, there will be no cost for the street light installation. If a new pole is required to install the proposed street light, the requestor will be responsible for paying the installation costs of the pole to the appropriate utility company.
Request a street light installation within the City using the new My CR online reporting tool and clicking on the Traffic Signals & Streetlights topic.
Street Light Outage/Issue
Street light bulbs within the City burn out once they meet their maximum life cycle. Before they go out completely, they may start to turn off for a period of time and then turn back on. Other times there is an issue with the photo cell that causes a light to be on all the time as opposed to only when it gets dark. There may also be damages to a street light or pole that require repair. A majority of the street lights throughout the City are maintained by utility companies and a few are maintained by the City. If you see a street light with any of the issues described above, please notify the City so a notification may be sent to the appropriate utility company. The bulb is usually replaced within a week or two, depending on the utility company's workload. Alliant Energy is currently replacing all the 100 watt high pressure sodium cobrahead street lights with 80 watt LED street lights. This requires changing out the entire fixture as opposed to just the bulb.
Report a street light outage using the new My CR online reporting tool and clicking on the Traffic Signals & Streetlights topic.
Downtown Street Lighting
Decorative street lighting is provided downtown to enhance lighting conditions for pedestrians in an aesthetically pleasing way. Most downtown street lights are on from dusk to midnight.
Street Light Plans for Final Plats
Prior to approval of final plat check submittal, a street light plan must be approved by the Public Works Department with the set of public improvement plans or on a copy of the final plat if no public improvement plans are associated with the final plat. The street light design must follow the City's Complete Streets Policy for Street Lighting. The street light plan must be coordinated and approved by the corresponding utility company(ies) for the platted area. Once a street light plan is approved, a street light approval authorizing installation of the street lights must be signed by the City Manager. Street lights must be installed before the development agreement may be released for the platted area. Payment for the street light installation costs (if any) must be coordinated with the utility company by the developer.
Contact Us
Office Location:
Public Works Department
500 15th Avenue SW
Cedar Rapids, IA 52404-5837
Phone Number: (319) 286-5176
Fax Number: (319) 774-5653
Office Hours:
Monday - Friday
7:30 AM - 4:30 PM
Email: traffic@cedar-rapids.org
After Hours:
If you need immediate assistance to report malfunctioning traffic signals, traffic sign repairs, or deficient construction traffic controls, please call the Police Department Dispatch at (319) 286-5491
