WEDNESDAY, JUNE 4, 2008 News WWW.KANSAN.COM THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
3
CAMPUS
Midy Ricketts/KANSAN
Road construction projects on campus have left several streets closed and limited access to parking. Students should familiarize themselves with the bus schedule to avoid frustration.
Road construction restricts campus
BY DEEPA SAMPAT dsampat@kansan.com
Drivers will have limited access through campus this summer because of construction projects on Jayhawk Boulevard and Mississippi Street. The street closings will also alter bus routes through campus.
The $8.8 million project will take place over a three-year period, with the majority of the construction occurring this summer.
Jim Modig, director of design and construction management, said the construction repaired steam tunnels around campus, which posed a threat to workers. He said the department completed a structural analysis of the steam tunnels a few years ago.
"It identified a number of tunnels that were in structural failing condition," Modig said. "We were putting our workers in very poor working conditions."
Modig said the repairs would make the tunnels meet safety codes and last for the next century.
Margaretta de Vries, senior administrative associate for KU Parking and Transit, said the construction closed Jayhawk Boulevard between Mississippi Street and Lilac Lane. She said Mississippi Street was also closed from Memorial Drive to Jayhawk Boulevard. de Vries said the only parking area that was closed was the north end of Memorial Drive and the area on Jayhawk Boulevard inside the construction zone.
"Everything else just has more limited access," de Vries said.
She said Parking and Transit
removed parking from one side of Memorial Drive for the summer to give buses better visibility on the road.
Because of the limited parking, de Vries said parking in the Mississippi Street garage was free to people with staff permits, but because student parking spaces would not be affected by the construction, yellow or Park and Ride permits would not be valid in the garage.
de Vries said the construction on campus roads along with construction of the Oread Inn and at 19th and Louisiana streets would limit and alter campus and city bus routes.
Derek Meier, Independence sophomore and transportation coordinator, said that because summer classes were in session, students should familiarize themselves with the bus route changes to avoid frustration.
"Students have to be aware that if they are leaving the Kansan Union on a bus they have to board by the Spencer Museum instead top of the Union," Meier said. "I think initially that will cause confusion."
Modigsaid that Jayhawk Boulevard would reopen by the beginning of the fall semester and that additional construction would take place by Lippincott Hall and Dyche Hall. He said work inside the steam tunnels would be ongoing but ready by the October heating season.
Meier said that the new bus routes shouldn't cause any delays and should take an equal amount of time to get through campus as current routes do.
Edited by Matt Hirschfeld
KU ON WHEELS
Bus routes change for summer
BY SACHIKO MIYAKAWA smiyakawa@kansan.com
The KU on Wheels routes and schedules changed Tuesday because of fewer summer passengers and more construction zones around campus.
The two bus routes that will still be in service connect campus with downtown and some of the major apartment complexes, including High Pointe, Meadowbrook and Campus Court at Naismith.
Danny Kaiser, assistant director of KU Parking and Transit, said construction zones and street closures caused some detours and limits for the bus service. In one example, passengers have to stop at Bailey Hall to get to the Kansas Union because buses cannot get across Jayhawk Boulevard. Kaiser also said the construction near 19th and Louisiana streets blocked the bus route from serving the area this summer.
"In the summertime, our ridership has always been pretty low anyway," Kaiser said. "There are not a lot of students who absolutely rely on the bus in the summer time."
The Oread Inn construction project will affect some of the fall bus routes that use Oread Avenue. Those routes will have to detour down Louisiana Street and return to campus via Mississippi Street.
Alternatives for students who don't have an access to the KU buses in their neighborhood because of reduced summer routes include driving or using the city bus system.
Derek Meier, Independence sophomore and transportation coordinator for KU on Wheels, said besides purchasing parking permits, students could park at the residence hall lots that were
YOUNG AT HEART (PG)
WED-TUCH: 4:30 7:00 9:30
FRI: 4:40 7:10 9:40
SAT-SUN: 2:10 4:40 7:10 9:40
MON-TUCH: 4:40 7:10 9:40
THE VISITOR (PG13)
OPENS FRI JUNE 6th 4:30 7:00 9:30
SAT-SUN 2:00 4:30 7:00 9:30
MON-THU 3:00 4:30 9:30
open to public during the summer. The Park and Ride Express, which travels near the residence halls, is free to anyone.
according to the Lawrence Transit System Web site.
The city bus system offers route 8, which runs across campus and connects downtown with 23rd Street and Ousdahl Road. This route has also been adjusted because of construction zones around campus.
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Regardless of See the map of the new those alternatives, routes and a time schedule. the KU on Wheels
summer routes create inconvenience to some students who rely on the KU bus service.
Kayla Fox, Lawrence sophomore, who lives near the corner of 23rd and Louisiana streets, said she rode a bike or walked to get to campus. She said she did not own a car and used a KU bus only when it rained or she had an early morning class.
The KU transit system will return to the regular bus routes and schedules in the fall, but passengers should expect a few modifications of the service.
"It takes about 30 minutes to walk to campus," Fox said. "If it rains, I'll try to get a ride from my friends in the summer."
Two major adjustments will be the elimination of the Night Campus Express and the merger of the Naismith and Oliver route and 23rd and Louisiana route.
Kaiser said the Night Campus Express was not a good use of funds because it didn't have many passengers and the Park and Ride buses and campus circulators operate during the evening.
He said the merger of the two routes should add buses to other routes.
One bus will be
One bus will be added to the Sixth and Crestline route and two will serve the Park and Ride buses during busy times. Meier said those adjustments should increase efficiency and service availability of the KU buses.
KU on Wheels will introduce the fare-free bus system in the fall, which allows anyone on campus to take a KU bus without paying. Passengers off campus will be able to board the bus by showing their KUIDs.
Kaiser said he expected the number of passengers to increase because of the new system.
Edited by Rustin Dodd
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