Guys can we PLEASE stop it with streetlights. They're not like home light bulbs. They overheat and go off all the time, cool down, and light up. Sodium bulbs need time to warm up and light up and then will sometimes protect themselves from heart or unusual voltage by shutting themselves off. They have a finite "on" time before they cycle and as the bulb ages that "on" time is shorter and shorter so they cycle more, so older ones shut off all the time. Some have light sensors that get tripped up by cars with poorly angled headlines or people wearing something that is reflective enough to set off the sensor. Others have timers which cause them to go off just to save energy. Not to mention, how many streetlights do you pass in a night? A few hundred? Just a few acting funny is just statistical noise. Not magic.
Im pretty sympathetic to the paranormal but 50% of this sub is "omg then a streetlight went out! that never happens." Um no.
Cycling lamp:
http://kcmo.gov/publicworks/traffic/street-light-tips/
Cycling lamp High-pressure sodium bulbs have an expected life of 4-5 years but must warm up for few minutes to produce light. Old or failing bulbs draw excessive electric current when starting, causing other components to overheat until fail-safe devices cut off the power. After the units cool, the bulb attempts to restart. As the lamp ages and deteriorates, the on time gets progressively shorter.
Cecil Adams:
Now, since my contract obliges me to insert at least one fact per column, this word from a top high pressure sodium engineer at General Electric: "It is a combination of coincidence and wishful thinking. … Cycling [on and off] occurs because the [lamp] ballast is only able to sustain an arc with a certain maximum voltage. As high pressure sodium lamps age, their voltage increases as sodium is lost by various chemical processes. [The lamp starts at a low voltage, which climbs to a steady-state value as the lamp warms up.] It is the steady-state voltage that slowly increases with burning hours due to sodium loss. Eventually, the ballast will only be able to start a cold lamp and warm it up to the dropout voltage." Then it goes out until the lamp is cool enough to restart.