Cindy Malone never thought that plastic wrap would prevent her daughter from receiving emergency assistance.
Updates to UB's emergency blue light phone system, one of the most visible security measures on the campuses, have extended beyond schedule. The delay leaves newly installed phones non-operational and bound in a covering that prevents student use.
Malone's daughter, Marissa, is a freshman in the social sciences interdisciplinary degree programs. Both were dismayed when classes began and the plastic wrap remained.
"I feel that the blue lights should have been up and running before these kids got back to school," Cindy Malone said. "Safety should be the first priority."
Although the majority of the newly installed phones are not yet operational, the existing system is still in place; students are not unprotected when walking on campus, as many parents and students have feared.
"The new blue phones are up and running in some areas and in other areas the existing blue phones are still operational. There's no less coverage than there was originally," said Joseph M. Desotelle, an engineering support manager for University Facilities.
The existing phones are still programmed to tag the caller's location on campus and immediately alert UPD when a call is made. Patrols have an average response time of less than one minute, according to the annual police report.
Requests for information regarding the expected completion date of the project went unanswered. Sources within University Police Department (UPD), University Facilities, and outside contractors hired by the university were unable to provide details on why the updates were not complete for the beginning of the school year.
"[University Facilities] is still working on them. As far as I know, they're hoping to have it done by the end of the month," said Chris J. Bartolomei, assistant chief of police at UPD.
Upon speaking with representatives from University Facilities, however, details on the production schedule remained unclear.
"I cannot comment on a projected completion date," said Louis J. Schmitt, director of facilities operations at University Facilities. "You'd think they would have been ready by the beginning of the school year."
When Malone's eldest daughter, Meg, attended Binghamton University, its campus blue light system was a comfort to Malone and her husband.
"At Binghamton, you could spot [the phones] a mile away. If you had to run, you knew what direction to run in," Malone said. "You really can't see them from a distance, which is one of the reasons they're changing the system. I just need them to change it today."
The new blue light phone system will improve the current arrangement; 63 additional phones, with accompanying security cameras, have been installed on North Campus. They are more efficiently designed with a simple push-button alert system and LED lights to ensure that they are visible from a distance. Members of the police force hope that the user-friendly system will encourage students to use the blue lights if they need assistance.
"If you have a cell phone, you have to know the [emergency number], remember it, dial it, and also most people don't know where they are on campus at any given time," Bartolomei said. "They might know the name of the building their class is in, but they don't know what parking lot they're standing in at the moment or what roadway. So, finding people [who do not use the blue lights] on campus is challenging for us sometimes."
Cara Shelhamer, a freshman undecided major, considers the delays unacceptable. Despite the fact that the old blue lights are still functioning, she said that the new system should have been installed and ready for students at the beginning of the semester.
"It makes me feel less safe travelling outside," Shelhamer said.
Other students were more concerned with the practicality of the system, rather than possible safety issues.
"Maybe they're making finishing touches and they don't want people playing with them while they're updating the system," said Dan Hosie, a freshman engineering major. "Still, it kind of defeats the purpose if they're wrapped up."
Email: news@ubspectrum.com
