Have you ever looked up at a flickering streetlight, or one with a dead bulb, and wondered who you should tell?
The good news is, it’s pretty easy to report streetlight outages online, as long as you know who to report to – Pepco or the city. Knowing where to go is as easy as knowing the difference between a wood and a metal pole.
Lights on wooden utility poles are fed by overhead power and in most cases are owned and maintained by Pepco. (About 25 wooden-pole mounted lights on Route 28 are the responsibility of the city.)
Lights in most cases on metal poles are fed by underground power and are owned and maintained by the city. (Some metal poles on private streets are maintained by homeowners associations.)
In both cases, the wiring serving the majority of lights is maintained by Pepco, and for power outages affecting those streetlights, Pepco makes the repair.
Outages or problems with lights on wooden, Pepco-owned poles can be reported at https://pepco.streetlightoutages.com/map/default.html. Two useful pieces of information to note are the closest street address and the number posted on the pole. Once the report is filed, Pepco emails a case number and estimated repair time, then follows up with an email notification once repairs are made.
For problems with lights on city-owned metal poles — including lights that are on during daylight hours, file a report at www.rockvillemd.gov/formcenter/public-works-8/report-a-streetlight-outage-or-problem-226. A map linked to the report form helps users to identify the light’s location. Providing the nearest street address is also a big help. City staff will respond with updates on the repair.
This article has been updated.