With the approach of winter, UC Davis can be a pretty dark place even at 5 p.m, around the time many people leave work or classes for the day. Others, who have an even later schedule, may have a tougher time navigating their way across campus.
The campus's Outdoor Lighting Committee wants to be assured that campus walkers and cyclists can see properly as they make their way around. The committee is inviting them to join a campus walking tour highlighting the most dimly lit spots at UC Davis. The walk begins 7 p.m. Wednesday at Memorial Union.
The Outdoor Lighting Committee's members are students and staff from departments such as Facilities, Student Affairs, Resource Management and Planning and the UC Davis Police. During the walk participants will be asked to lead committee members to areas on campus they feel are not lit sufficiently.
Last year the committee hosted four such walk-arounds, said Damon Williams, a utilities superintendent with Facilities and the chair of the group.
"A lot of the times (the participants) bring up really good questions and ideas," he said.
Recently his department has replaced many lights near the Student Housing office on the campus's north end. Facilities has budgeted $300,000 this year to improve lighting on campus, including making it more energy efficient.
Theodros Gashaw, a committee member and director of campus affairs for the Associated Students of UC Davis, hopes to get student feedback on other lighting trouble spots. He hasn't received any formal complaints about unsafe lighting conditions on campus, but Gashaw says "you do find the general sentiment being expressed."
For one, students worry about their safety walking at night down the center of the Quad.
"There are lights there, but there are a lot of branches in the way," he said. "People are concerned that someone might be hiding in there."
Other students have complained about low lights along the pathway to Parking Lot 6, just south of Hutchison Drive across from Shields Library.
Gashaw expects that students and staff with ties to organizations traditionally focused on safety such as the Campus Violence Prevention Program and the Women's Resources and Research Center will attend the walk, but he also hopes that the average member of the campus community will, too.
"There are a lot of students who have concerns but just don't always have the opportunity to express them," he said.
In general, Williams suggests that students, staff and faculty members stick to paths and roadways when they are traveling across campus at night. The majority of campus parking lots and pathways are lit through the night. All are illuminated approximately 5 p.m. to midnight. And all roadway lights are lit through the night. Williams is in the process of converting the remaining lot and path lights to a system that will allow them to run all night.
Williams' committee plans to soon publish a campus map, highlighting the location of well-lit paths and outdoor phones. The availability of escort services such as Cal Aggie Hosts will also be noted. The student hosts, available by calling (530) 752-1727, offer van transportation across campus from 6 p.m. to midnight each day of the year.
The map would be available for faculty and staff members, Williams said. ASUCD already distributes a similar guide to students.
The Outdoor Lighting Committee also may schedule more campus tours this year if the community demands them, Williams said.
For more information about the maps or the lighting tour, call Williams at (530) 754-6226.