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November
1999
For Immediate Release
Reflective
Jackets Light Up University Foot Patrol Group
London...In 1988,
the University of Western Ontario community established the
first volunteer student foot patrol program in Canada. Its
mission: to increase awareness about campus safety, to deter
campus crime and to provide escorts on campus.
Since January 1988, the crime rates have dropped
by 40 percent and more than 30,000 safe escorts have been
provided.
Obviously, the volunteer foot patrolers were
escorting at night, meaning they were walking in dark conditions
and risking their safety to help others. David Crombie, program
coordinator for the University of Western Ontario Foot Patrol
Program had experimented with many different reflective products
over the patrol's ten year history to increase the volunteer's
visibility. But there were still accidents.
"We averaged at least one traffic-related injury
per year and a half dozen complaints regarding near misses,"
explains Crombie. "This may not seem like a lot to the average
citizen, but it is substantial for a volunteer organization."
Two years ago, Crombie decided to try 3M Scotchlite
Reflective Material on the volunteer's uniforms. The results
speak for themselves.
"The material is so bright that we regularly
get comments and compliments from customers, volunteers as
well as members of the community," says Crombie. "The inclusion
of this material on our uniforms brings many benefits to our
program including: increased safety for our service providers,
and higher visibility for customers to identify our teams
from a distance. We have experimented with many different
reflective products over our ten year history, but 3M Scotchlite
Reflective Material lights us up at night like no other."
Since 3M Scotchlite Reflective Material has
been added to the uniforms, the Western Foot Patrol has had
no complaints and no injuries.
For more information on 3M Scotchlite Reflective
Material, please call 1-888-3M HELPS or visit our web site
at www.3M.com.
Contact 3M Canada PR department.
3M and Scotchlite are trademarks of 3M. Used
under license in Canada.
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