The Outer Loop gets re-lit

By Margeux Clemmons     12/4/08 6:00pm

Night-time joggers and commuters will not be left in the dark in Facilities, Engineering and Planning's next project. Light fixtures along the outer loop will be installed beginning February in order to increase the safety of Rice's hedge-lined border with the outside world, FE&P Communications Manager Susann Glenn said. The impending improvements are not the first of Rice's collaborations with the City of Houston to positively impact the space.

"We're interested in installing the lights, even though it isn't our sole responsibility, because the enhancement of the path has a direct impact in quality of life on campus," Glenn said, referring to the jogging track on the Outer Loop. "It is an opportunity to work collaboratively with the City of Houston as we did with the decomposed granite pathway."

Plans for the installation began last year when a group of concerned students met with Rice University Police Department Chief Bill Taylor as well as FE&P staff to discuss the lighting around Rice's perimeter gravel path, where many Rice students and local residents jog daily. The group composed a list of problems and potential solutions for the space.

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Glenn said the path is currently lit sporadically and that there are two issues that impact the quality of light along the Outer Loop: one, that many of the lamps have been replaced over the last year, improving lighting in some areas; and two, that the height of the existing city fixtures are located well above the tree canopy, causing dark spots.

Despite the fact that the Outer Loop is by law under the City of Houston's jurisdiction, FE&P began plans for improvement that would abide by city regulations. Rice is not receiving any aid from the City of Houston for this project.

FE&P staff are currently testing a preliminary design along one section of path for four new lights that feature a lower height than those currently in place and are on the opposite side, the part closer to Rice. One successful test has already been completed. Once installed in February, the four fixtures will draw from a temporary power source. This preliminary implementation will allow those involved in the project to determine whether or not the changes will succeed in lighting the entire loop sufficiently.

Although FE&P is exploring LEED-certified fixtures in an effort to make the proposal as sustainable as possible, no final decision has been made on the type of lighting to be purchased from Graybar Electric. Other challenges for the project include the need for a practical power source and electrical feed, neither of which are available in the present infrastructure along the path. New power lines will need to be installed in order to reach the new lighting because there is currently no existing electrical system where FE&P plans to install fixtures.

In order to avoid a high one-time cost, FE&P plans to divide the Outer Loop lighting makeover into several spaced-out installations. The addition of supplementary fixtures is contingent on whether or not FE&P finds the test installation successful and decides to carry out the project, Glenn said.

While FE&P Senior Project Manager and Engineer Bob Flumach began managing plans for the test experiment, the students in University Courses 219: Survey of Sexual Violence, led by Wellness Center Director Emily Page, independently assessed a need for improved Outer Loop lighting.

Students in the group included Jones College senior Alex Solomon, Wiess College senior Rachel Kinney, Baker College seniors Billy Haig and Chris Douglas, Sid Richardson College senior Whitney Sandin, Brown College junior Pierre Beasley and Sid junior Anna Roberts. The group met with Flumach to discuss how they might be of service to the already rolling project. In order to encourage FE&P to continue with the plans and support their efforts with evidence, the group conducted an anonymous survey of 122 undergraduates at Rice, including 60 males and 62 females. The survey asked students whether or not they felt safe jogging along the loop and whether or not they felt less safe at night, Solomon said.

The results of the survey showed that although most students felt safe on the Outer Loop during daylight hours, 10 percent of participants reported feeling very unsafe running along the path at night and of the 5 percent who reported feeling very safe, none were female. Additionally, approximately 50 percent of females and 40 percent of males reported feeling somewhat unsafe on the Outer Loop at night. Eighty percent of students said they would feel safe with improved lighting, and 70 percent said they would consider running the Outer Loop at night after the installations. The UNIV 219 group hopes their results will promote a continuation of the project.

"We wrote a report to encourage the powers that be to install the lighting," Solomon said.

He also said several students in his class planned to make efforts to see the project through, suggesting further surveys for students after the test fixtures are installed.

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