University of Virginia Library

Primary Targets

Primary targets of investigation are the
Alderman Library area walks and the
Memorial Gymnasium area walks, as well
as the walk between Monroe Hill House
and Peabody Hall, the walk leading from
the Garrett Hall area behind Monroe Hall,
the parking lot between Maury Hall and
Cabell Hall, the Lawn crosswalks leading
from the Randall Hall area to Garrett
Hall, and the grassy area at the north end
of Cocke Hall.

The subcommittee is also researching
the various types of outdoor lighting,
specifically the low-lighting technique in
contrast to the high, bright-lighting
technique found in abundance on the
Grounds.

A study prepared by Waller S. Hunt,
Jr., chairman of the subcommittee,
indicates that brighter lighting, such as
the "mercury-vapour" pole lamps located
at Garrett Hall, tends to cause night
blindness for the pedestrian. The
high-wattage bulbs provide a greatly
illuminated sphere of light in the
immediate vicinity, but the shadowed
areas outside the sphere are consequently
exaggerated a great deal.

The study cites examples to verify its
claims such as a downtown residential
sidewalk in Williamsburg which utilizes
the low-light technique with success in
creating a generally illuminated area.
Experiments with this technique are now
being conducted at various locations
throughout the University.