As if construction had not claimed enough parking spaces around campus already, now Mother Nature wants a part of the action.
Icy conditions have taken over the Polo Field gravel lot at Cannon Drive and 10th Avenue, forcing Transportation and Parking to close 200 spaces.
This closure will remain in effect until the lot is deemed safe for commuters. The loss of these spaces, even temporarily, is a heavy blow to an already overcrowded parking system.
Beth Kelley, associate director of Transportation and Parking, said it has received a large amount of complaints from customers regarding the safety of the lot.
“There’s a tremendous amount of ice at the west end of the lot, which makes it very treacherous for vehicles and people walking,” Kelley said.
She also said the recent bout with frigid temperatures is preventing the chemical solution, which is applied to the ice to help it melt, from working. The lot’s drainage problems, combined with the inclement weather, create a liability, Kelley said.
Transportation and Parking has opened up the Buckeye Lot at the corner of Fred Taylor Drive and Ackerman Road, to supply alternative parking.
Express bus service will be provided from the Buckeye Lot to the Medical Center via CABS’s”Med Center Express” which will run 24 hours a day, Monday through Friday.
David Crawford, spokesman for the Ohio State Medical Center, said employees were notified yesterday of the closure.
He said an e-mail was sent early in the day to advise the hospital staff of the changes and alerted them of the conditions in the lot.
With predicted high temperatures well below freezing for the next two weeks, the lot’s condition is not expected to improve and will remain closed until it is less hazardous.
Kelley said the closing is not meant to complicate the commute to campus, but is intended to keep people safe.
