Students have raised concerns about safety when walking at night between a university campus and town centre.
Amy Fuzzard, 21, a final-year student at the University of Northampton, first raised the issue at a Police, Fire and Crime Panel meeting in December.
She highlighted a lack of lighting and visible security cameras on the route, saying a path that "once symbolised safety, partnership and community" had "quietly falling into neglect".
The University of Northampton and West Northamptonshire Council said student safety was a priority and both organisations would continue working together to assess options.
Fuzzard said the route had visibly deteriorated: "Over my past few years studying here you can tell that it has degraded. There's less lighting, there's less security cameras, there's no signage anymore.
"I think there's a lot of really easy wins - it's just checking the lights are being turned on. The infrastructure is there; it's just making sure it's up and running constantly."
Fellow students echoed her concerns. Jason Sparkle, 20, said: "There's a lot of places where you'd expect a lamppost to be. In Becket's Park, for example, it’s pretty dark and a lot of people come here for running, walking their dogs or hanging out after university, and it’s just not safe."
Student representative Sarah Johnston, 23, highlighted “dark spots” on the walk home. “The park is basically pitch black after 5pm,” she said. “If you live across from the hospital, you’ve got to walk a long way home. I felt so uncomfortable that I would get the bus, and that’s about £3 for one stop, which is a bit ridiculous.”
A University of Northampton spokesperson said: “The safety of our students is our highest priority. We pride ourselves on our 24/7 security and our Safe Zone app, which allows students to call for security assistance at any time.
“We also provide students the option to be escorted from the bottom of the town centre back to campus at any time of the day or night, known as the Student Route. This is well lit and has good CCTV coverage, but we continue to work with the council on improvements.”
A West Northamptonshire Council spokesperson said: “Student safety is a priority for the council and we continue to work closely with the University of Northampton and our partners to support and promote the designated route between Waterside Campus and the town centre.
“The route is lit as effectively as possible, and Purple Flag assessors recently commented positively on lighting levels as part of their review of the town’s evening and night-time offer. As the route sits within a designated bat conservation area, lighting must be carefully designed to minimise ecological impact, which means downlighting is used rather than uplighting.
“We will, of course, consider the feedback raised and explore how the route can be more clearly advertised and signposted to further increase awareness and confidence.”