Over 600 West Campus streetlamps upgraded to improve safety

AUSTIN (KXAN) — Over 600 streetlamps in West Campus are newly upgraded to improve low lighting in the area, Austin Energy said Monday.

Austin Energy said it worked with UT parent and community group Safehorns and other organizations to address the low lighting and lack of lighting in the area.

The changes were led by an Austin City Council resolution from May 2017. It directed Austin's city manager to do a lighting study focused on West Campus pedestrian safety.

The streetlamps were retrofitted with brighter LED bulbs, the Austin Energy release said. Other improvements include fixing non-functioning light fixtures; trimming trees around lighting to better illuminate sidewalks; and installing 15 more streetlights.

The West Campus area includes residential and commercial buildings, bounded by West 29th Street, Guadalupe Street, North Lamar Boulevard and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard.

Safety and crime concerns have recently been raised in the area with UT President Jay Hartzell calling for more patrols last November following a shooting. A police standoff in June renewed safety concerns in the neighborhood.