This story was originally published in the Feb. 1 issue of Fourth Estate.
As a result of Academic VII construction, continual detours and road closures around campus will be in effect throughout the semester. Construction crews are rebuilding part of Patriot Circle to lie further south of its current location in order to make space for the new College of Health and Human Services building.
Some students, like freshman civil engineering major Mera Shabti, are unhappy with the resulting changes to their commute.
“The construction site has really deterred my travel to get onto campus, and has even caused me to be late to class sometimes,” Shabti said. “It has blocked off a major road that once allowed us to reach the other side of campus from University Drive very easily, but now we have to make a U-Turn and take a long detour around the whole campus to get to the other side.”
The road adjustments have been broken down into five phases, according to the website Building Patriot Pride. The first phase finished on Jan. 18, and the fifth phase is expected to be completed in June. Parking and Transportation plans to send emails to the Mason community before each new phase begins. The last email, which described Phase 2, was sent on Jan. 15. See the map below for a visual of Phase 2.
(Additional reporting by Donna Imadi)
(Graphic by Megan Zendek/Fourth Estate. Photos by David Schrack/Fourth Estate.)
