When the sun goes down, stay clear of the unlit Lakeshore path. That's the consensus among both administration and students.
Senior Joseph Goldfine said he walks home alone ""all the time"" and is ""not a single bit"" scared to do so. But even he admits to fears of the Lakshore's unlit walkway.
""The lakeshore path is brutal. Nobody wants to go back there,"" Goldfine said.
Lights have never lined the two-mile path that weaves its way down Lake Mendota. For years, it has contributed to the path's natural, unblemished-by-man aura. It has also, in recent years, fueled concern over the path's safety.
UW-Madison Dean of Students Lori Berquam thinks keeping the path unlit will discourage students from taking the trail at night. When SOAR parents ask her why she doesn't light the Lakeshore path, Berquam replies, ""Why would I light the path and create a false sense of security, when people could be then in the bushes?""
On the issue of lighting, Assistant Dean of the Law School Walter Dickey said, ""I think we need as much guardianship as we can find.""
""Lighting places where you're vulnerable"" is a means of obtaining such guardianship, according to Dickey.
UW-Madison student Jeremy Lange echoed Dickey's claims. Lange said adding lights on the Lakeshore path ""would help because you could see somebody coming.""
Conventional wisdom holds that lights would give someone enough time to call for help after spotting a potential criminal.
However, Berquam disputes that even lights could give a walker in a hard spot enough time to buzz for help.
""Do you know how long it would take someone to hear you on the Lakeshore? Lights or no lights?"" Berquam said.
