TURNING off street lights at night does not lead to more crime or road accidents, new research suggests.

The conclusion comes from a study of 14 years of police data by University College, London and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, covering 62 British council areas, including Essex.

The findings support claims by Essex Police and Crime Commissioner Nick Alston that crime and accidents have not increased, overall, since the county council’s 1am-5am streetlights curfew started.

John Mason, who leads the Green and Rochford District Residents’s group on Rochford Council, has campaigned on the issue since the countywide curfew began.

He said: “If this research has been carried out properly, then I have to accept the findings.

“I contacted Mr Alston because I wanted to know what action the police were taking to tackle the fear of crime.

“With short nights during the summer months, this probably isn’t going to be at the front of everyone’s minds, but come October, it’ll be a real issue again.”

The blackout originally ran from midnight until 5am, but has since been shortened.

Castle Point Council’s Tory leader Colin Riley, is still pressing Rodney Bass, Tory county councillor behind the blackout in an effort to get the lights back on at some road junctions and on steep hills.

He said: “There are a couple of areas where we think the lights need to be on because of safety issues.

Generally, we support the switch-off, but we think there needs to be a bit more consideration.

“The police have always said crime hasn’t necessarily gone up, and the latest research supports that.”

LED street lights are to be installed in some Castle Point streets, under a county council trial scheme. If they save enough money and energy, they could be fitted more widely.

Basildon Council’s Tory leader Kevin Blake said: “These findings don’t surprise me. I know, for example, burglaries have decreased.

“If there is an attack in an underpass, or someone gets knocked down, people are quick to blame it on the lack of lights, but that’s not always the case.”

The research, published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, looked at statistics for burglary, theft of or from a vehicle, robbery, violence and sexual assault and road accident reports.