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Campus Bulletin

May 29, 2007

Construction to Start on UC Entrance, Parking and Buses Affected

A number of changes are being made to the entrance mall in front of the University Centre. After June 5, the parking lot in front of the UC will be closed permanently and replaced with green space.

In addition, the roadway leading to the UC will be closed until September for construction. When it opens again in the fall, traffic will be limited to transit, mobility and emergency vehicles.

During the construction period, buses will pick up and drop off from South Ring Road near the entrance to the UC.

People accustomed to parking in the accessible stalls or at the meters in the parking lot located in front of the UC will be able to find parking in several other areas on campus, and signs will be posted near the entrance mall directing people to the new locations.

The accessible parking spaces are being moved to P42, the new parking lot south of the University Centre. P1, located near the Axelrod Building, will also provide additional barrier-free spaces.

To make room for these spaces, service vehicle parking in P42 has been moved to P32, behind the Federal Building at the corner of Gordon Street and South Ring Road. Premium parking spaces in P42 have not been affected, but when construction outside of the Axelrod Building is complete in the fall, premium parking will be relocated to P1, and additional short-term parking meters will be added to P42. P42 will also have an expanded passenger pick-up/drop-off area and a taxi stand.

Longer-term parking meters are located in P8, the visitors' parking lot located across from South Residences. Visitors can also park in the paid visitors' lot near P31.

The changes to the entrance mall will "provide for a safer, more efficient, environmentally friendly and barrier-free environment,” says Ian Weir, manager of parking services and transportation planning. The changes will also help alleviate the traffic congestion in front of the UC, the campus’s busiest core area, and reduce pedestrian/vehicle conflicts, he says.

A transit hub will be constructed within the entrance mall area in front of the UC to accommodate the increased bus service as a result of GO Transit offering new routes that will start and end on campus. They will run between U of G and Square One in Mississauga and the Cooksville GO Station. The non-stop buses will leave approximately on the hour during working hours Monday to Friday and will make one evening trip.

The hub will include new passenger platforms and bus bays. Go Transit, Guelph Transit and private carriers serving the University will be provided with clearly identified and dedicated bus bays to help eliminate confusion, Weir says.

In addition, crews will be improving sidewalks, creating barrier-free ramps, installing new lighting and building new bus shelters, he says.