Yoakum’s blue streetlights explained

The blue streetlights dotting Yoakum are the result of a recalled batch of defective white LED lights rather than a demonstration of Bulldog spirit by lining City streets with school colors. 

Yoakum City Manager Kevin Coleman said the City purchased a batch of 300 lights a few years ago to match the bulbs used on TxDOT right of ways. The lights have since started to reveal themselves as faulty by emitting a blue or purple glow indicating unbalanced filaments. 

LED lights do not directly produce a white glow. The white appearance results from the proper mixture of red, blue and green LED’s adjacent to one another, according to technology company Philips. 

When the filaments are unbalanced, one color dominates. This malfunction led to the familiar blue hue illuminating many local streets as lights changed color sporadically over time. 

The city manager explained that the City first changed to white LED lights to match the style adopted by TxDOT on their right of ways about four years ago. Public works crews started by replacing the bulbs on heavily traveled streets and eventually implemented the change for all streetlights in Yoakum.

While the City purchased the 300 bulbs from the same vendor used by TxDOT, Coleman said the order unfortunately aligned with a batch of lights that would later be recalled for filament imbalances. Although the blue bulbs produced the correct number of lumens, the company agreed to provide replacement lights.

City crews have begun to replace the lights one at a time, with priority given to heavily traveled corners and areas where inconsistent light color patterns are most noticeable. The City receives 100 replacement bulbs at a time in exchange for the same number of faulty lights. Yoakum’s blue glow will slowly fade away until all lights are replaced.