STREET lighting in Atherton and Leigh will become more environmentally friendly, as Wigan Council spends £11 million replacing the town’s lights.

About 31,000 LED street lights will be fitted across Wigan borough’s roads over the next three years in a move that councillors say will save up to £1 million a year.

The new lights can last more than 20 years, require less maintenance and use nearly 60 per cent less energy.

Lord Peter Smith, the leader of Wigan Council, said replacing the lights would help the authority save money in the long term.

He said: “We’ve come up with a new scheme to replace our existing lights with LEDs which will still offer the same service the public expects but will be considerably cheaper.

“This is an investment to save us money in the long-term.”