As art students, many of us ended up stay behind after classes to work on our projects, and by the time we're done with our work it tends to be pretty late outside. With many news about assaults and violence going on around the place, it's always a good idea to know how to protect oneself, especially those who walk to and from school. This month let's look at ways to keep ourselves and others safe and secure when such a time arises.
Walk in groups
The basic rules we all have learned in elementary school is any group of three or more is always better than walking alone. It not only makes you feel more comfortable but can act as a deterrent for anyone who might bother you.
Hitch a ride
Being on a vehicle is a lot of time safer than walking outside, so before rushing out, ask a friend if they're willing to give you a ride. On the other side, if you see a friend or classmate on their way home when it's empty and dark out, offer them a ride. If your destination is pretty far off campus, Lyft and Uber pooling can be pretty decently priced, if you don't mind spending money on it.
If you live in a dorm, some schools do offer security rides at certain hours if you ask them about it. Make sure you know your school’s policy before you run off into the night.
Ride a bike
If you’re commuting home with a bicycle, be sure to wear a reflective coat or reflective colored items to keep yourself visible to other drivers. Install front light on your bike if you tend to get home late, and keep your eyes out for pedestrians who might not be as visible as you think.
Public Transportation
Not sure if the bus is there yet? Check on apps such as Rider or Transloc if they’re close. If not, stay in a well-lit area with some traffic and especially don’t get close to the road if you’re at a bus station. If someone is making you feel uncomfortable on public transport, draw attention to it. Make sure everyone knows you and if necessary, call a staff member over.
If there's no one out there to either walk or lend you a ride there are multiple measures you can take while walking alone.
When walking by yourself
ALWAYS. We repeat. ALWAYS walk in well-lit areas with at least some kind of pedestrian or automobile traffic if you can help it. Stay on the part of pavement that is farther away from the driveway.
Equipment: Pepper spray are pretty convenient and comes in different varieties that can be inserted into your keychain.
Music: It will be very tempting for you to blast out loud music to feel more assuring but a lot of time it makes you unaware of your surrounding, so if you must, put the music in low-moderate volume and keep one ear unplugged.
Apps:
SafeTrek: The app lets you register emergency number and while walking in an area you either don't feel safe about or are not familiar with you can keep your thumb pressed on the screen's button. When you're out of said area, you can take your thumb off and entered a 4 digit code to mark that you're safe. In the case of being under attack, take your finger off the screen and not entering the pin code will immediately send an alarm to the local police.
LiveSafe: This app’s affiliate with college campus security and share similar function with SafeTrek.
Similarly other apps such as Watch Over Me, Motorola Alert, Companion, iGoSafety, bSafe etc. let you set up either a timer or safety pin alert that will send a notification to your designated contact or the police station.
TransLoc Rider is also useful if you want to check for the nearest bus stop to hop on or if there’s any incoming bus that you can catch.
With this list of suggestion, we at Studioblr Collective hope to be of help to keep each other safe for the upcoming turbulence inside and outside of campuses.
