Page 15 - Campus Security & Life Safety, July/August 2021

"During major campus events such as graduation ceremonies or sporting events, even the slightest security hiccup can derail an entire day, or much worse. Understanding the solutions necessary to address issues proactively is vital."
By Nick Valdez
move at faster pace than normal traffic so dissuading these surplus, speedy vehicles is a beneficial safety step.
Parking Access
Parking is the next logical step on the traffic flow chart. Providing parking that is accessible and well-regulated is instrumental in getting vehicles efficiently on and off campus road- ways. Parking can also be a productive source of revenue generation for a school. Thus, a secondary goal of campus traffic management teams should be to introduce forced stops at parking garage entrances where drivers must take a ticket stub or scan an RFID fob to ensure faculty and staff are parking vehicles in their appropriate locations.
Entrances to parking areas serve a similar purpose as campus entry points. Barrier arms are therefore suited to this application as well, particularly when deployed with an articulating arm like the HySecurity Strong- Arm Park. Unlike a traditional rigid arm, an articulating arm bends using an elbow to provide traffic management in an environ- ment where space is limited. This allows articulating barrier arms to fit into parking garage environments where ceiling clearance may be lower or other constraints may be present. The cycle speed and visibility of such arms mirror that of rigid arms, allowing them to function in parking areas with the same efficacy they do at campus entry points.
Getting vehicles into and out of parking areas efficiently is always going to be an opera- tional goal and incorporating fail-safes in the event of power outages is key. For this reason, the StrongArm Park includes a DC-UPS back- up. It also features advanced reporting and monitoring capabilities via HyNet that can integrate with existing hardware and software, alerting security when parts are non-opera- tional or damaged. Further intelligence can be built into these machines to count and com- municate capacity status as well.
A typical campus will have multiple park- ing areas, and these spaces may not have identical entrance dimensions. Identifying a barrier arm manufacturer who can provide
they are one of the areas where school administration has the most ability to exert control over the movement of people and vehicles. As a result, there are a variety of security and traffic management goals one may look to pursue for these entry points.
First, entry points are an opportunity to regulate the nature and volume of vehicles. There is a constant, wide range of reasons for vehicles to enter a campus, most of which are perfectly appropriate. However, authorizing
and pacing throughput is both a prudent risk management strategy and a measure against fender-benders.
The entry point solution must serve sev- eral different goals. It should slow down arrivals, so vehicles do not enter campus at high speeds, enhancing pedestrian safety. It should optimize throughput to avoid back- ups, while deterring cut-throughs or other- wise aimless traffic.
Finally, it must allow industrial vehicles to enter campus, since moving trucks and com- mercial vehicles are commonplace visitors.
Though these goals may seem difficult to realize through only a single solution, some- times complex problems have simple answers. A barrier arm, designed to raise and lower for the regulation of routine traffic is efficient, versatile, and visible, making it an effective entry regulation tool.
For example, consider the StrongArm from HySecurity. With a cycle speed of just two seconds to open and three to close, the StrongArm will slow traffic without allowing it to stack. Its 90-degree open angle allows for even the largest industrial vehicles to enter. The speed and flexibility of barrier arms like the StrongArm has distinct advan- tages over slide or swing gate solutions, which feature far larger entrapment zones where pedestrians may become injured.
Given the less-than-judicious tendencies of college-aged populations, prioritizing additional safety measures like UL325 com- pliance and soft-start/soft-stop pacing is yet another measure barrier arms take to protect pedestrians. For maximum safety, many bar- rier arms use a “breakaway arm.” In the event of a vehicle strike, this feature allows for damage to the arm without endangering the device’s more valuable motor or chassis. Maintenance staff can then bolt the arm back on after a crash rather than having to replace an entire system.
LED lighting on the arm allows drivers to see the barrier arm from a distance, giving them time to slow down or deterring those whose intent is to cut through campus. By nature, people taking a shortcut are likely to
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