THE decision to switch off street lights in Abergavenny from midnight to 5am has angered residents with many criticising the lack of information about the move from Monmouthshire County Council reports STEPHEN PENN. Victor Truscott of Chesnut Drive contacted the Chronicle last week, asking why the streetlights had gone off around his home. Victor said, "My wife and I got home late one night, and we were surprised to see the street lights had gone off around where we live. At first we thought it was just a problem with the lights, as other lights we in the area were also out, but we were surprised when it happened again the following night. "We contacted the One Stop Shop to ask what was going on, and we were given very little information as if they were not sure what was going on either. I fact they suggested that we ask The Chronicle! "I find it rather odd that the council didn't tell us if they had planned to turn the lights off between these times, as we had no idea. His concerns were echoed by Sara Chicken, who said, "I find it appalling the council did not tell us about this. With the turning off of the lights happening, and the recent issue of disabled parking, it seems like the vulnerable are just being hit constantly within this county. "Older people, and disabled people are going to suffer the most with these lights going out, and not to tell these people it would be happening no doubt caused a lot of panic for them. If an older person woke up and saw that their entire street was in darkness with no idea why, that would no doubt have really scared them. "It's not acceptable that the council do not thoroughly inform their residents in good time about a change like this. Those people who work shifts in this county and have to walk home late will not have been aware of this, and this could be an added danger to them. "Many may have wanted to make alternative arrangement for their travel in this case, but to not be given this chance and not be told about turning the street lights off in this time is terrible." Many also spoke out Councillor Maureen Powell's suggestion that people should all carry a torch. One resident, who asked not to be named, said, "Using a torch 'like in the war' shows just how much past their use-by dates these policies, not to say politicians, are. It must almost rank as the crassest comment since Marie Antoinette suggested the mob eat cake." They added, "The town has in the past come to accept that good street-lighting is the bare minimum acceptable in view of the lack of night-time patrolling / policing of the town. "Surely there must be funds available, given the millions that have just gone into the Council's coffers for the town-centre 'Morrisons' site. And I wonder what will happen to the lights at the Winter Wonderland (County Hall)?" And while it has been noted by the council that the turning off of street lights has had no direct connection with an increase in crime rates across the UK, some residents and councillors are still opposed to the change and fear that this could heighten the opportunity for crime on those walking through the town at night. As reported last week, Llanwenarth Ultra Kevin Williams has expressed his concerns towards the action, and one resident, Viv Jeffries, has spoken out about the risks people may face walking around after dark Ms Jeffries said, "I tried to visit a friend less than 10 minutes away from my home and failed to get there in "semi-lighting". I had to return home and I was petrified as it took me all my time to see where the pavement ended, as some areas were pitch black and where another began at 9:30pm. "Now enforced darkness from midnight has begun. Every woman has the right to walk in safety and this is no longer the case. Many functions are coming up between now and the new year and revellers of all ages will be out and about. "Not everyone has cars or can afford to take taxies, and not everyone will have friends to walk home with, nor boyfriends. "If someone with ill intent were to follow someone home there will be no "well lit" areas to walk home in safety, nor would the person attacked be able to describe their attacker as to their apparel, face etc, heaven forbid this should happen." She added, "Why should the public endure a blackout to 'bail out' MCC - when taxpayers have paid for this service in the Community Tax Bill?" A spokesman for MCC said, "The decision to turn off street lights between midnight and 5am is a matter of public record and has been the subject of discussion at council meetings. "The Abergavenny switch off was programmed for early August 2014. However we understand that not all residents were made aware of these changes. "We should have been more clear and we apologise to residents for this oversight."