The Ohio State University Police Division (OSUPD) is launching a new pilot program to use cruise lights while on nighttime patrol on the Columbus campus.
These newly installed cruise lights sit along the rear driver-side and passenger-side windows of the police vehicle. Rather than flashing, they are steady, low-intensity lights that are used to increase the visibility of police vehicles.
“This idea actually came from a conversation we had with our Undergraduate Student Government (USG),” said OSUPD Chief Dennis Jeffrey. “We regularly meet with our students and are open to new ideas for how we patrol our community.”
USG passed a resolution in November calling on OSUPD to adopt this measure on campus as part of its standard patrolling protocol, including the use of cruise lights to distinguish campus police patrol vehicles and to increase police visibility.
Former USG Senator Francesco Migliore, a natural resource management major representing the College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences, drafted and introduced the resolution.
"Keeping cruise lights on at night isn’t just about deterrence, it’s about making officers more approachable and strengthening their connection with the Buckeye community,” he said. “This initiative also reflects the new police administration’s commitment to listening and responding to student concerns. I’m proud to see this step being taken to build a safer, more connected campus.”
Cruise lights are dimmer than emergency lights and do not flash. The lights can increase visibility, making it easier for drivers to see that a police officer is in the area and by making patrols more visible for community members. Some studies have shown cruise lights can deter crime by making police more visible.
The university continues to make investments in safety both on and off campus.
Ohio State has increased the presence of police on campus by hiring and training additional OSUPD officers. Since 2018, OSUPD has increased its staffing from 56 sworn police to an authorized strength of 75 law enforcement officers.
Investments also include expanding its joint patrol program, which now has four full-time OSUPD officers partnered with Columbus Division of Police (CPD) officers to patrol the nearby University District. This program expands the existing police patrols, as does a university-funded crime interdiction program that pays CPD officers’ overtime to patrol on nights and weekends. This high saturation of sworn police is supported by non-sworn security like the Buckeye Block Watch program, as well as expanded technology.
Ohio State has added permanent lighting and cameras as well as more than 60 license plate reader cameras. Cameras were also added at all campus parking garages. In addition, mobile cameras are deployed on and off campus at select locations based on crime trends.