Utility Corridor and Roadway Relocation (UCRR) construction crews are at work around campus in preparation of the two-way road system that will house the relocation of the utilities for the entire campus. University Drive South will be inaccessible starting in mid-to-late November, and will continue to be so for approximately a year.
The utilities are being relocated around the perimeter of the university. The corridors under the road will house more modern, redundant utilities within 17 miles of underground piping and duct banks.
Traffic that enters from William T. Morrissey Boulevard will instead take a left up University Drive West and continue around campus. The only vehicles accessing the Campus Center rotary will be the shuttles.
The project entails deconstructing the median at the entrance to the campus at Morrissey Boulevard, and demolishing the guard-shack at the beginning of University Drive South to prepare for the two-way traffic. Visitors can expect the work to begin the week of Oct. 26, 2014.
“Right now, it’s four lanes in and four lanes out, and eventually it will be two lanes in and two lanes out,” states DeWayne Lehman, director of communications at the University of Massachusetts Boston.
The crews have already removed the median at the intersection of Mt. Vernon Street, or the T-Gate, in addition to the outer fencing for the softball field near the Clark Athletic Center in preparation for the new two-way traffic.
Additionally, a new University Drive North will be built to connect with Mt. Vernon Street.
Shuttle bus passengers will also notice the cuts they are making in the Campus Center lawn. This work will allow the shuttles to continue their loop, as the only route back will be up Columbia Point.
Roy Lichtenstein’s Brushstroke Group on the Point will also be removed and refurbished during construction, as will the Campus Center sign, which will be placed in storage.
The project is being designed by BVH Integrated Services, Inc. and built by Bond Brothers. The project is funded by the UMass Building Authority.
UCRR Project Begins Another Stage
October 24, 2014