On Wednesday, January 22, 2025, from 5 to 8 p.m, UC Davis Facilities Management (FM) and the UC Davis Police Department held the 15th Annual Campus Safety Lighting Walk, an important community tradition here at UC Davis.

Every year, the Lighting Walk brings together students, staff, and local community members to assess campus lighting conditions, broken light fixtures, and identify areas in need of improvement. Thanks to the growing awareness and dedication of the Davis community, turnout has grown throughout the years. This year boasted well over 100 people in attendance, one of the largest yet.

The Lighting Walk is critical to ensure that our campus lighting systems are fully functional for the safety of everyone in the area. A well-lit campus makes people feel safer at night, reduces crashes and accidents, and helps deter crime. We would like to extend our heartfelt thanks to everyone who participated in this year’s walk. Your involvement plays a crucial role in enhancing campus safety, and we deeply appreciate the time and effort you contributed to this important cause!

To kick off the evening, attendees gathered for an orientation session where they were briefed on safety protocols and given the tools needed for the walk, including flashlights and campus maps. Participants were also treated to free pizza and exclusive UC Davis merchandise as a token of appreciation for their commitment. After sunset, the crowd was divided into nine groups, each accompanied by a campus leader. These groups walked through different sections of the campus, inspecting lighting conditions and noting areas requiring attention.

The Lighting Walk highlights just how important the work of FM’s exterior lighting team is, which manages all of the 13,000+ lights on campus. Because of the sheer size of their responsibility, the walk gives the team a much more comprehensive look at the lighting fixtures than they could accomplish on their own in just one night. In fact, they received a grand total of 147 lighting reports from this year’s Lighting Walk! The team greatly appreciates having the opportunity to get much needed feedback from the community members directly affected by their work.

The university is committed to enhancing security on campus and has invested over $20 million in upgrades over the next five years. Of that, $7 million will go towards making significant lighting improvements, with construction projects set to begin in the spring. These investments reflect the university’s dedication to fostering a safe, welcoming, and well-lit campus environment for all.

There’s no need to wait for next year’s Campus Safety Lighting Walk to report any lighting issues that you find in the meantime. You can always send a text to the number 530-574-4100 with the location or pole number of any broken light fixtures on campus to let the exterior lighting team know! Once again, thank you to everyone who joined us for the 15th Annual Campus Safety Lighting Walk. Your participation makes a huge difference in the safety and well-being of our community. We look forward to seeing you next year!