Street Lighting Electrician
Key facts
Street lighting electricians construct and maintain electric power transmission and distribution in street lights. They maintain, test and repair street lights in compliance with safety regulations.
Street lighting electricians are vital for maintaining the functionality and safety of public lighting systems. Your daily work involves inspecting, testing, repairing, and replacing components of street lights, ensuring they operate efficiently and meet safety standards. This often includes working outdoors in various weather conditions and following strict electrical safety protocols. As an associate professional, you'll be expected to apply established procedures and seek guidance when needed, while also developing your skills and knowledge.
- • Diagnose and repair faults in street lighting circuits and fixtures.
- • Install new street lighting systems and upgrade existing ones.
- • Perform routine maintenance and testing to ensure optimal performance and longevity.
Where this occupation is in demand
Reported labour shortages and surpluses, by year. Published for occupation groups, not for individual job titles.
Figures cover Electrical and electronic trades workers — 42 jobs including this one.
In shortage: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia and 10 more.
Longest-running shortage: Belgium, 3 years.
Select a place on the map to see its figures.
About this source›
Source: ELA/EURES labour shortages and surpluses. Readings are published at occupation-group level, and cover Europe. Editions differ in annex layout and country coverage, so a change between years does not always mean the labour market changed. Countries in grey were not reported, which is not the same as being in balance.
What these words mean
The four things this section reports
- Reported demand
- Whether employers report needing people in this job — a judgement published by a national or EU body, not a count.
- Where it is heading
- Which way employment in this job is expected to move over the coming years, from an official projection.
- Openings
- Roughly how many openings arise — from growth and from people leaving the job.
- Typical pay
- What people in this job typically earn where the source publishes it. Blank does not mean unpaid; it means nobody publishes it for that place.
A measure is left out when nobody publishes it for that place, rather than shown as zero.
Which way the market leans for you
- In your favour
- More openings than people looking — employers are competing for candidates.
- Balanced
- Openings and candidates are roughly matched.
- Competitive
- More people looking than openings — expect to compete.
- Mixed evidence
- Sources disagree, or the same occupation group is short in one part and oversupplied in another.
Every source resolves to one of these four, so there is a single vocabulary to learn. What differs is the evidence behind it, which is printed underneath each verdict — a measured ratio of openings to jobseekers, or an assessment published by a national body.
How this job compares with other jobs in the same country
- Strong
- Among the strongest in that country
- Good
- Stronger than most jobs in that country
- Mixed
- About typical for that country
- Weak
- Weaker than most jobs in that country
This is a rank within one country, not a score you can carry across borders — the registers behind two countries count different people, so the same number means different things in each. It is also why a job can be among the strongest in a country and still show as Competitive: it leads the field in a market that is crowded overall.
Where these come from
Every figure is published by a national statistics office, a public employment service or an EU body, and each card names its source and the period it covers. Some places are counted monthly, others assessed once or twice a year, so two places on the same map can be describing different moments — the date is always shown.
None of this predicts one person’s chances. It describes a market.
Reported demand · Typical pay · Where it is heading (United States, Ireland, Australia, Malta)
| Reported demand | Typical pay | Where it is heading | |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States | Not reported | $63,190 2025-05 | +9.5% 2024–2034 · BLS 2024-2034 |
| Ireland | Not reported | — | +19.2% 2023–2035 · Cedefop 2026 * |
| Australia | Shortage reported Jobs and Skills Australia 2025 * | — | — |
| Malta | Shortage reported ELA/EURES 2024 * | — | — |
* Published for occupation groups, not for individual job titles.
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS)
Do you guide students, clients or employees? Use this occupation data in your organisation.
Future Outlook for street lighting electrician
The outlook for street lighting electrician reflects a balanced mix of automation exposure and durable, human-led work.
How are these scores calculated?
The Resilience Score (0–100) estimates how structurally protected this occupation is from automation and AI disruption, based on task-level analysis. Higher scores mean more human-judgment-intensive tasks. AI Exposure shows the estimated percentage of task hours that current AI capabilities could affect. These are model-derived structural indicators, not predictions about individual job security.
How could street lighting electrician change as AI adoption grows?
This role is likely to change gradually, with AI supporting selected tasks rather than replacing the whole occupation.
Illustrative scenario based on task automatability — not a forecast. Values are rounded the further ahead you look.
This role is likely to change gradually, with AI supporting selected tasks rather than replacing the whole occupation.
Illustrative scenario based on task automatability — not a forecast. Values are rounded the further ahead you look.
Model-based estimate. Use it as a planning signal, not a guarantee.
Compare this to your profile
How AI may change this role
Deterministic, model-based interpretation of current role signals — not a guarantee of replacement.
What still depends on people
- work ergonomically
- wear appropriate protective gear
- comply with electrical safety regulations
Where AI may become a co-pilot
- install power lines
- prevent technical problems with lighting equipment
- repair underground power cables
Tasks most exposed to automation
No single task here is highly automatable yet.
Vital Signs & AI Vectors
AI Exposure Vectors
0-100%Exposure to physical automation, robotics, and sensor-driven task displacement
Exposure to AI-assisted analysis, pattern recognition, and predictive modelling tasks
Exposure to content generation, creative augmentation, and large language model tools
Exposure to workflow automation, decision-support software, and process digitisation
Technical Details
NexFuture v3.0 estimates automation exposure natively from ESCO essential-skill groups, weighted by skill mass and calibrated against expert anchors. Scores are probabilistic estimates, not guarantees. See the NexFuture Methodology White Paper for full details.
Measures automation exposure. It does not measure pay, demand, or how many jobs exist near you.
What people in this role usually do
Construction
A typical day as a street lighting electrician
09 09:00 · Morning inspect underground power cables
10 10:30 · Mid-morning comply with electrical safety regulations
12 12:00 · Midday prevent technical problems with lighting equipment
14 14:00 · Afternoon install power lines
15 15:30 · Late afternoon repair underground power cables
17 17:00 · Wrap-up wear appropriate protective gear
Task order is illustrative. Individual days vary.
What you need to do this work
The skills, knowledge and tools this role calls for — and the traits and rewards that come with it.
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work ergonomically
Apply ergonomy principles in the organisation of the workplace while manually handling equipment and materials.
-
wear appropriate protective gear
Wear relevant and necessary protective gear, such as protective goggles or other eye protection, hard hats, safety gloves.
-
comply with electrical safety regulations
Comply with safety measures, standards and regulations for working with electrical equipment and the installation, operation and maintenance of electrical wiring and installations.
-
install power lines
Install cables and networks for electricity distribution on the street, in the fields and in buildings, and put them into operation.
-
repair underground power cables
Identify damage and perform the required repairs, as well as perform routine maintenance, to underground power cables used in the transmission and distribution of electrical energy.
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prevent technical problems with lighting equipment
Anticipate possible technical problems with lighting equipment.
-
inspect underground power cables
Inspect the underground power cables during installation or repair activities in order to identify faults and assess the extent of damage or need for repairs, and to ensure they are correctly installed and maintained.
artificial lighting systems
Types of artificial lighting and their power consumption. HF fluorescent lighting, LED lighting, natural daylight and programmed control systems allow an efficient use of energy.
- electric current
- electrical discharge
- electrical power safety regulations
- transmission towers
- electricity consumption
- power engineering
Path to become a street lighting electrician
What it typically takes to qualify: education level, where it is a regulated profession, and where to study.
Upper secondary education
536 programmes in 25 countries teach the core skills of this job. Plus 241 short courses that build single skills.
A few examples, taught in the language of this page:
Electrical and Power Transmission Installers
Flathead Valley Community College · the United States
Ammattiopisto Tavastia · Finland
Master of Science Electrical Power Systems
Technological University of the Shannon · Ireland
Unitec Institute of Technology · New Zealand
These are 6 of 777.
Sources
- 1. Source: U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard (collegescorecard.ed.gov), CC BY. Data as at 10/06/2026. Adapted by NexPath.
- 2. Source: Commonwealth of Australia (Department of Education), CRICOS, data.gov.au, CC BY 2.5 AU. Data as at 01/09/2026. Adapted by NexPath.
- 3. Source: Opintopolku.fi (Finnish National Agency for Education)
- 4. Source: Europass Qualification Dataset Register (European Commission)
- 5. Source: Study with New Zealand (studywithnewzealand.govt.nz), Education New Zealand. Copyright in the material is owned by Education New Zealand (All content (c) Education New Zealand). Listings are provided by the education providers, are for information and promotional purposes only, and are not endorsed by Education New Zealand; each provider is responsible for its own content.
- 6. Course information from Qualifax (qualifax.ie), Quality and Qualifications Ireland
Growth Pathways & Similar Roles
Explore typical career progression paths, adjacent skills, and similar roles to plan your next transition.
Where does street lighting electrician fit?
Similarity scores based on skill overlap from ESCO data.
For organisations
The data on this page, working for your students, clients and staff.
Frequently asked questions
What kind of training is needed to become a street lighting electrician?
Are street lighting electricians typically employed or self-employed?
What safety precautions are most important in this role?
How much does Street Lighting Electrician pay in the United States?
Sources: ESCO O*NET ELA/EURES Cedefop BLS Data updated October 3, 2026 About our data