Before the addition of the latest sidewalk/crosswalk combo in the infamous A-Lot, the dangers of walking on campus were numbered. Now that we have a new route for walking�which reroutes all the driving�traffic is taking a new turn.
Traffic on campus has always been a little bit scary. How many can say they�ve never bumped their tire on the curb at the corner of Maura Hall by the two (sometimes seemingly pointless, but actually helpful) stop signs? Ever get gridlocked in the one-way traffic under the arch by Lowe Hall?
By Karissa Kilgore,
Senior Staff Writer
Before the addition of the latest sidewalk/crosswalk combo in the infamous A-Lot, the dangers of walking on campus were numbered. Now that we have a new route for walking�which reroutes all the driving�traffic is taking a new turn.
Traffic on campus has always been a little bit scary. How many can say they�ve never bumped their tire on the curb at the corner of Maura Hall by the two (sometimes seemingly pointless, but actually helpful) stop signs? Ever get gridlocked in the one-way traffic under the arch by Lowe Hall?
A-Lot used to be frightening because of the bathtub-sized pot holes and unmapped pedestrian traffic.
The area behind McKenna Center gets sketchy when cars idle on the yellow curb, and seeing an oncoming car is, well, nearly impossible.
Going down the hill, it’s easy to not realize the speed with which your car is careening towards another. Those bends are treacherous! Coming up the hill becomes an exercise in steering and stress management because there really is only so much you can do to be a safe driver before the other drivers become an issue.
The fears pedestrians have for walking on campus have always been a given, since the 15mph command is easily forgotten after being hypnotized by countless sycamore trees. If people run stop signs, decide not to use turn signals, back up to get that last parking spot in B-Lot, or just speed on by, those that march their way across campus have right to fear.
This new pattern presents new stigma, however. A-Lot, in all its repaved glory, appears to be safer on the whole. Some of its most confusing elements have been altered: no �Keep Right� sign, no slanted parking spaces, two strategically placed sidewalks, a few new stop signs, and two-way traffic.
It’s a dream come true to anyone that’s experienced winter on the Hill. When snow hit, the rows of parking spaces were crooked as a dog’s hind leg, making it all but impossible to navigate, driver or pedestrian.
It’s interesting, though… this new artery of Seton Hill. It’s not unlike having to find an alternate way to get to your house, when the same way you�ve gone all your life is under construction.
It’s bizarre. It feels weird. You might screw up and have to go around the block again. Simple habit becomes hazardous pioneering.
Freshmen, transfers: you have it easy. Everybody else? Good luck adjusting. I think the �so far, so good� label fits to close this subject, but I still feel like the new traffic patterns will affect our population well into the change of the seasons. Only time will bring that yield.
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