New Public Safety Enhancements for CUIMC

A public safety officer provides directions at the booth on 168th Street and Fort Washington Avenue. 

A public safety officer provides directions at the booth on 168th Street and Fort Washington Avenue. 

Beginning this week, additional uniformed public safety officers will be patrolling the CUIMC campus and nearby residential areas during evening and overnight hours. The additional officers reflect the growth of the medical center’s footprint in recent years and the movement of students, faculty, and staff around a larger area of the neighborhood. 

The expanded coverage includes:   

Public Safety Officer at Booth on 168th Street and Fort Washington Avenue—This booth is now staffed seven days a week by an officer to provide a highly visible post during evening hours from 4 p.m. to midnight, for those in need of assistance or information. 

Additional Mobile Patrol—An additional vehicle operates during evening and overnight hours seven days a week, from 4 p.m. to 8 a.m., near the residential areas and pedestrian streets used by members of the CUIMC and Washington Heights communities. It complements an existing patrol vehicle, improving responses to calls for service. 

Public Safety Officer, East Campus from 166th to 168th Streets, Audubon Avenue to Broadway—An officer will patrol this area seven days a week from 5 p.m. to 1 a.m. Patrol areas include the areas near the subway station entrance at 168th Street and St. Nicholas Avenue and nearby parking garages, the Edge Hotel, 21 Audubon, the School of Nursing, the Irving Center for Cancer Research, the Lasker Biomedical Research Building, and the Russ Berrie Medical Science Pavilion.  

Public Safety Officer, West Campus from 168th to 169th Streets, Fort Washington Avenue to Broadway—An officer will provide increased patrols and visibility in this area seven days a week, from 5 p.m. to 1 a.m., on 168th Street near the Armory and on 169th Street between Fort Washington Avenue and Broadway. The officer will pay special attention during the evening commute to the area near the subway entrance at 169th Street and Broadway. 

“We want to make sure that people feel safe when they are on foot, whether they are walking to the subway, to campus locations, or to residential buildings nearby,” said Donna Lynne, DrPH, chief operating officer for Columbia University Irving Medical Center and chief executive officer for ColumbiaDoctors. “These additional officers will provide a highly visible and reassuring presence during evening and overnight hours.”

In the event of an emergency on the medical center campus, call Public Safety at 212-305-7979.