The New Orleans City Council today will discuss the numerous street lights that are out across the city, leaving neighborhoods and highways in the dark.
New Orleans City Council President Helena Moreno says she wants the public works department to develop a long term plan to fix street lights across the city.
Shannon Blanks, Deputy Director, Public Works, says they have been working to do that.
"We have repaired about 698 outages, reset 108 poles, installed 29 new poles," Blanks told the city council's Public Works Committee on Wednesday.
But there are hundreds more repairs to go.
"Right now we have 445 repairs that we need to do with 125 them being missing or knocked-down poles," said Blanks.
Moreno calls it a serious public safety issue.
"We’ve been in the dark too long," Moreno said "We need a new direction, and it’s time to take on this issue with the urgency needed to keep our roads and neighborhoods safe."
Moreno's proposal would direct the Department of Public Works to "take all steps necessary, including brining in a third party, to create a master plan for city lighting, using other successful cities as a blueprint."
It also orders the department to look for ways to prevent theft and vandalism that has knocked many street lights out.
