MTSU Sidelines

Issue date: 3/10/08 Section: News

The section of MTSU Boulevard that runs from Rutherford Boulevard to Blue Raider Drive will close today due to construction.

Traffic to and from Rutherford Boulevard will divert to the newly-opened Alumni Drive.

"This is to widen MTSU Boulevard," said Nancy Weatherly, manager at Parking and Transportation Services. "It will be widened to make room for a dedicated bus lane so the buses will be able to travel through the traffic."

In addition to the road closure, the adjacent gravel parking lot is closed as well.

"We recommend parking in the Rutherford Boulevard lot across from Greek Row and riding the shuttle," Weatherly said, citing other construction projects on campus such as the new softball field, as well as increased traffic this week as MTSU hosts the Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association for Boys State Basketball Championships.

"It's going to be hard moving around campus this week," Weatherly said. The bus schedule has been adjusted in conjunction with the road closure, she said, and "I've put that route on our Web site."

The construction on MTSU Boulevard is expected to continue through the middle of August.



Growing pains



"I'd like to highlight that this is going to be a very difficult project in the sense that it's going to be a nuisance," said Patti Miller, an architect and assistant vice president in Campus Planning.

Still this road closure is a growing pain as the university works toward its master plan for parking accommodations.

"The master plan, recently updated and approved, focused on creating a pedestrian-core campus. As a part of that plan, the university has been continuing to develop plans for improvements to the transportation system," Miller said.

Ultimately the university aims to construct "six parking decks at the perimeter of campus," connected via shuttle bus. "The widening of MTSU Boulevard and the creation of the Alumni Drive connection are really the first step to creating" such a network, Miller said.

"It's going to take a long time for that to happen," Miller said. "The first deck is going to be the most difficult," she said, because it will not be funded by the state.

Further, "as the campus develops, it's a land-use question," Miller said. "About one fifth of the campus is dedicated to surface lots."

The plan aims to preserve some green space in the heart of campus, which in turn forces parking toward the perimeter.

"The desire will be to create and dedicate those green spaces in the academic core," Miller said.

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