Contrary to what you might think, the construction that has currently blocked off large sections of St. George St. (mostly around Harbord) and caused the redirection of many a frustrated driver has actually proven to be a boon for students.
We are a campus of jaywalking speeders who are saddled with the sometimes impossible task of traversing great distances in ten-minute intervals. Anyone who has ever tried to get from the McLennan Physical Labs to their next class at Vic during rush hour (or even midday) traffic knows how difficult a trek that can be, especially for those of us who don’t drop by the gym as often as we should.
The construction currently separating the heart of campus from the outside world is actually doing a lot to make our sidewalk commute that much faster and safer. It’s much easier to avoid sinkholes and look out for falling debris than it is to dart in front of speeding cars and madcap bikers while trying to beat a yellow light. St. George has become a speed-walker’s paradise, with no traffic to worry about and a wider avenue to accommodate the hundreds of students constantly vying to gain pole position in their race to class.
Ours has got to be the only campus where students are able to and would consider taking the subway between classes. It’s often jokingly remarked that U of T students don’t need a health club; we get all our walking in just getting from building to building. While risking one’s life to make a history lecture on time is not the most rational thing to do, sometimes it can’t be avoided. Happily, students can run collision-free across St. George, at least for the next little while.
Dearest members of the admin, we admit that we thought you’d lost your mind when you agreed to such significant road maintenance during the bustle of first term, instead of getting it done earlier in the summer.
But now that we can see the results of the construction, we realize that this allowance to jaywalkers is all a part of your quest to improve the student experience. We can only hope that, as usually happens, the road repairs are delayed and our thoroughfare is kept clear of traffic during the winter months, when finding a ploughed, ice-free path to scoot across is always a challenge.
Now if the school could just get those “high-tech” vending machines in Sid Smith to accept any kind of coins and stop dispensing the wrong beverages, then our happiness would be complete.
