How long does it take to change a light bulb in Leighton Buzzard?

LBO reader Dave Chamberlain recently contacted us in exasperation after emailing the council in October last year complaining three lights were not working on the footpath between Parsons Close Park and Grovebury Road.

He’d tried to log the issue on the council website but was unable to do so because there are no reference plates on the poles.

He sent reminders in November and again in December, but nothing was done apart from an apologetic council spokesperson promising: “I have now passed this to the manager of the streetlighting and asked that it is looked at as soon as possible.”

Finally, in January, Dave sought our help.

The 59-year-old, who’s lived in Leighton all his life and works at Collins Aerospace in Grovebury Road, said: “I use this path twice a day, five days a week, to get to and from work.

"Lots of other people use it to run along, walk their dogs, or get into town. It’s extremely dark at this time of year and you can imagine how dangerous it was when we had the snow and ice.”

And he asked in desperation: “How long does it take to change a light bulb?”

Not long it would seem, when your local paper is involved.

We contacted the council last week, and lo! There was light – but only two out of the three now work.

Dave said: “It's funny how once you got involved they started to fix them. As the song goes ‘two out of three ain't bad.’”

A council spokesperson told us: “We apologise for the delay in fixing these streetlights.

"We have reviewed this report and found that there is a cable fault, which will require some of the cable to be replaced. We’re in the process of getting quotes to fix the problem.

"As soon as these have been received and approved, we will book the work in as soon as possible.”

And a final word from Dave: “Thanks for your help – without your intervention, I wonder how long it would have taken to resolve the issue.”