Construction began March 25 on a permanent gate outside Mackenzie Building to stop vehicular traffic on a stretch of Library Road and turn it into a pedestrian zone.
The gate will be built on Library Road near the parking lot adjacent to Mackenzie, and is the first step in converting the stretch of road from Prescott House to Mackenzie into a pedestrian path, as outlined in Carleton’s 2010 Master Plan.
The Master Plan is a guideline for contruction projects the university wants to complete in the future and is updated every five years.
Construction on the gate will take about a week, according to Darryl Boyce, Carleton’s assistant vice-president (facilities, management and planning). Once completed, the gate will not allow vehicles to pass through from both directions on Library Road.
Signs will be posted on Library Road and Campus Avenue warning motorists it is no longer a thoroughfare.
Emergency vehicles and cyclists will still be able to pass through, Boyce said.
A pedestrian pathway outlined in the Master Plan will not replace the stretch of closed-off road yet since the route is needed for the possible construction of a new building, Boyce said
“We need to have the road in place for a few more years until such time as when they build a building in between Mackenzie and Lanark Residence,” according to Boyce.
He said the gate intends to boost pedestrian safety along Library Road because of the high volume of pedestrians coming from residence that use its sidewalks.
Construction was supposed to begin March 23, but was delayed due to cold weather, said Mike Graham, assistant director of facilities management and planning at Carleton.
Garth Gaston, a fourth-year civil engineering student, said he is worried the pedestrian zone would create traffic congestion.
“For the sake of campus working as a whole, traffic flow through campus would be congested because there would only be one way through [on Campus Avenue],” he said.
Graham said the construction is “needed sooner than later for safety purposes,” and the traffic circle adjacent to the Canal Building is next up for renovation.
