
Outdoor Lighting Safety
Annual Campus Lighting and Safety Survey
Each winter, Facilities Management, Environment, Health & Safety and the UC San Diego Police Department partner with CARE at the Sexual Assault Resource Center to conduct campus lighting survey tours, assessing issues that can be improved to create a safer environment for our community. Representatives from Parking and Commuter Services, Residential Life, Residential, Retail & Supply Chain Services (RRSS), Scripps Institution of Oceanography, Campus Planning and libraries also participate in the annual lighting survey.
2026 Survey
During the Annual Campus Lighting and Safety Survey, volunteers will meet every Wednesday evening in February at 6 p.m. to search for potential safety hazards and other concerns. This information is shared with the campus teams equipped to address these issues by making repairs, adding signage/lighting or implementing other improvements.
This schedule is subject to change based on weather conditions. Surveys will cover these campus areas:
- February 4 – Main campus buildings, including School of Medicine
- February 11 – Scripps Institution of Oceanography
- February 18 – Coast, Mesa, One Miramar St., La Jolla Del Sol, Mesa Nueva and Nuevo East and West
- February 25 – Residential housing on the main campus
Anyone on campus can participate! Sign up on Google Docs and get information about meeting locations, what to bring and details about the new web app to record data.
Safety Improvements
The Facilities Management lighting team is systematically replacing all low-pressure sodium (yellow) street, walkway and parking lot lighting in areas it maintains with LED fixtures—anticipated completion December 2026. LEDs provide white light for increased safety and security at night in addition to using less energy, lasting longer and requiring less maintenance.
Interior Building Lighting
UC San Diego works diligently to conserve energy by limiting interior building lighting at night. However, during the Coronavirus pandemic, interior lighting remains on in many buildings to help ensure public safety and security.
Lighting Concerns
We ask that all concerns include specific information about the location. The walks will address only exterior concerns, and we review all submitted comments during the walks.
You can report lighting concerns by: