Coal Grove’s lone traffic light has received a lot of attention the past few weeks as its bulbs have consistently been going out well before their time.

Police Chief Eric Spurlock said this could potentially be a problem as a dark traffic light poses a safety hazard for motorists.

“Well it’s a safety issue first off,” Spurlock said. “Luckily people have been smart about it though, and we haven’t had any accidents yet.”

The village has gone through about four boxes of lights.

The combination of cheaper bulbs used in an attempt to save money and the age of the red light are the two key factors in the increased frequency of blown bulbs.

Spurlock said Mayor Larry McDaniel asked him to research alternative bulbs. He turned in his research to McDaniel Wednesday morning and the bulbs were ordered the same day.

“I sent one of my men to West Virginia Electric to order new bulbs today,” McDaniel said. “The new bulbs will be more heavy duty and we hope to have them in tomorrow. I told my men, if it wasn’t pouring down rain tomorrow, I wanted them in as soon as possible.”

McDaniel’s said the new bulbs cost about five times what the cheaper ones they were using cost, but using less bulbs will even out the overall expense.

“Times are tough and we have to cut back on some things” Spurlock said. “But, there are some places you can’t cut back and this is one of them.”

The bulbs are expected to be installed Thursday but could be delayed due to inclement weather.