JACKSON, Miss. (WLBT) – The number of interstate lights that are out due to copper wire theft in the Jackson metro has been the subject of two 3 On Your Side investigations.

[READ: Driving in the Dark: While other states crack down on copper wire theft, MS continues brainstorming strategies]

[READ: Still Driving in the Dark: Improvements to Mississippi’s interstate lighting system still months away]

Wednesday, a Mississippi Department of Transportation official provided an update on MDOT’s efforts to light up our interstates.

In January, we told you that MDOT had awarded a contract to Garver Engineering, a firm that’s currently assessing and evaluating Central Mississippi’s interstate lighting system.

Part of the firm’s project includes putting nearly $8,000,000 toward items that will make it harder for thieves to steal copper wire.

“This is a permanent repair, so it’s not a Band-Aid or anything like that,” MDOT Public Information Officer Michael Flood said.

Flood says MDOT’s leadership decided years ago that it would be a waste of taxpayer dollars to continuously repair lights that had been stripped of their copper wire because it would likely only be a matter of time before thieves struck again.

But now, Flood says he’s happy to report that progress is being made.

“In recent years, we haven’t had that good of an update. We have kind of been at a loss, so it’s nice to be at this point where we are moving forward,” he said. “We do have a contract in place to not only upgrade to LED lights but also have preventative measures in place to prevent copper theft and keep our interstates lit up. “

Some of those preventative measures include a monitoring system where MDOT is alerted if a segment of lights goes out, allowing crews to respond immediately.

Part of the project with Garver Engineering also includes doing away with bridge mounts and restricting access to wires by burying conduits underground and not having any junction boxes that are accessible from the surface level.

“We have a plan in place. It’s going to be a process. We just ask everyone to bear with us and give us some patience and time to allow us to make those repairs.”

The process is expected to last for a number of months.

Flood says he’s hopeful the firm will get to the design phase of the project toward the end of the year and then the implementation phase would follow shortly afterwards.

When asked why a project like this was not started years ago, Flood said processes like this take a lot of time – especially when the Federal Highway Administration has to be involved.

In the meantime, MDOT has been making repairs to interstate lights that were out due to the need for routine maintenance – not copper wire theft.

That includes the lights along I-55 at Meadowbrook Road and Eastover Drive, which are now working again.

Want more WLBT news in your inbox? Click here to subscribe to our newsletter.

See a spelling or grammar error in our story? Please click here to report it and include the headline of the story in your email.

Copyright 2024 WLBT. All rights reserved.