FortisAlberta has launched a new Streetlight Repair Map to hopefully alleviate stress on the roads and help reduce repair time.

Central and southern Alberta's major electricity supplier, FortisAlberta says the new map gives ease of use to their customers and helps pinpoint to the source of the problem.

"You're able to actually zoom in and see the lights in your area and basically click on it - if you're on your phone or on your laptop for example and report which light is out," said Natasha Russell, Corporate Communications Advisor with FortisAlberta. "You simply report it and we get it on the back end and of course it goes to our PLT's and then they're aware and we get working on it."

Russell said the map allows the Power Line Technicians to receive more detailed information on the specific outage or streetlight repair request.

"We do find that with the map itself we do get communications to them even faster and so then we're able to do those repairs sooner than later."

The new addition comes in an age where more and more people are using their cellphones or are on their laptop, creating quick response times and ensuring the community remains safe in the event of a streetlight outage.

"We know a lot of our customers are using mobile and they're online," said Russell. "It's just about efficiency and giving them another option as opposed to calling 310-WIRE, where they can just go online and report a light out and know that it's going to be taken care of."

FortisAlberta operates more than 60 percent of the province's electricity distribution network and over 120,000 kilometers of power lines. With customers in over 200 Alberta communities, Russell said the Streetlight Repair Map improves safety in those local municipalities.

"Every case is important. This is just one tool that will help our customers, it will be easy on them to report, but also on us. It gives us increase in visibility and helps us to do our job faster."

The Streetlight Repair Map can be found here.

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