Students had to walk farther to catch their transit starting Monday. All transit lines stopping at the Student/Haley Center location have been moved to the northeast side of Jordan-Hare Stadium until Aug. 12.
"We've been talking about it for a while," said Rex Huffman, manager of transit services for Auburn University. "As far as where we were moving to, that was finalized the week before the break."
Students were notified of the impending change via e-mails sent by Dean of Students Johnny Green during spring break.
"I realize that construction is an inconvenience and will require you to make some adjustments in your schedule until mid July," Green said in one of the e-mails, "but I wanted to give you a heads-up before you returned to class from spring break so you can be ready to make the adjustment you need to get to class on time."
The transit stop moved because of the Campus Green and Ancillary Projects, which have been broken down into two parts. The first part of the project will be completed by Aug. 12 and includes landscaping projects south of the Student Center and the relocation of Duncan Drive closer to the Student Center.
"It's going to be a great improvement," said Mike Bell, senior project manager of the facilities construction division. "Matter of fact, the hardest part right now is the hardship we're putting on these students for having to make them walk around our construction area, which is a pretty big area."
The temporary transit stop is located near stadium gates 13-20, which means students have a longer walk to central campus classes.
Brendan Christy, a sophomore in management, said he has to ride the transit, but the move hasn't really inconvenienced him.
"It's a longer walk from Haley, but it's closer to Lowder," Christy said.
Students may be wondering if the move will affect transit route length or wait time, but Huffman said wait time may only increase by two to three minutes.
"It's not a significant problem," Huffman said.
Bell said the rewards outweigh the inconvenience, because the landscaping project will be beneficial to students. He said land south of the Student Center is being landscaped into a student recreational area, like a park.
The first part of the project also includes what is called the East Stadium Plaza.
The Plaza will include brick pavers, much like the Concourse, and planters with trees.
There will also be a new brick transit building to provide students shelter from the rain.
"We're doing the best we can to get it over with as fast as we can," Bell said. "Once it's all over, it'll be a beautiful thing."
Huffman said another problem the transit service is encountering is the construction on Magnolia Avenue. He said stops on that street have been discontinued for now, but they will begin again after the project is completed.
"This is something you deal with every year in this area with all of the construction and roads being worked on," Huffman said.
Part one of the Campus Green and Ancillary Projects is scheduled to be completed by August 12, which means the transit will be moved back to the Student/Haley Center location in time for the start of fall semester.
"When it's all said and done, it's going to be great, but you've got to get through this, just like anything else," Huffman said.
The second part of the project will route Duncan Drive down behind Petrie Hall and connect it to Donahue Drive. The construction between the first and second part will pause for football season and begin again in December.
"The parking lot between the stadium and Petrie Hall will not be a faculty parking lot anymore," Bell said. "It'll be for football trailers, and that's one of the downside -- that it won't be parking for faculty anymore."
Do you like this story? The Plainsman doesn't accept money from tuition or student fees, and we don't charge a subscription fee. But you can donate to support The Plainsman.
