UW Safewalk at full strength, ready for finals

The University of Wisconsin–Madison’s SAFE program is fully staffed and ready to provide safe late-night transportation to any student who needs it as the spring semester draws to a close. SAFE stands for Safe Arrival For Everyone.

The SAFE program is in the process of completing a staff transition in order to be more efficient and responsive to students who might be out late studying for finals, says Gordon Graham of Transportation Services.

As a special accommodation for finals week (May 11 — May 15), SAFEcab rides will be available until 6 a.m. instead of ending at 3 a.m. Compared to past years, an extra SAFEwalk team will also be on duty during finals week from Sunday through Thursday.

Although 11 staff members recently resigned, SAFE has replaced all of them. In addition to the SAFEwalk teams, a dispatcher is on duty starting at 8 p.m. to answer calls and direct the teams.

"We absolutely encourage every student to call us if they need a walk or ride during finals — no one will be turned away," Graham says. "We’re ready to go."

Some recently published reports did not present a clear picture of the program and its recent operations, Graham adds. No students are refused assistance. SAFE has a longstanding policy that it will offer a cab ride if for any reason if it cannot respond in a timely manner to a SAFEwalk request.

In the wake of Brittany Zimmermann’s death, demand for the escorts temporarily increased. On average, SAFEwalks went from seven to 17 walks per night while cab rides went from 57 to 82 cab rides per night.

Recently, the number of walks and rides has declined to less than 10 walks and about 70 cab rides per night.

At all times, SAFEwalk has been adequately staffed to meet the demand, Graham says. The total amount of time that SAFEwalkers spend on average escorting students on campus is small — less than one hour each night out of a five-hour shift.

When SAFEwalk management recently asked employees to spend more of their shifts out of the office to enhance visibility, issues arose among the staff members and led to the group of resignations.

SAFE Nighttime Services consists of three programs: SAFEwalk, SAFEcab, and SAFEbus. The main mission of SAFEwalk is educating the UW–Madison community on matters of nighttime safety. Students are encouraged to plan trips in advance, travel with someone they trust, and stay alert to their surroundings.

For more information or to arrange a walk, call (608) 262-5000 or visit the Web link to SAFE Nighttime Services.

Students are encouraged to report any service delays or other problems by calling the Customer Service Desk at (608) 263-6667, or visiting the Web site.