How will the Shortlidge Mall work? What exactly will be closed, and during what hours?
This concept proposes closure of Shortlidge between the parking entrance behind Ritenour and the south entrance to the Eisenhower parking area. This is a very short distance, but an important one in terms of pedestrian safety: in 1997, our master planners clocked 23,000 pedestrian crossings here in an 8-hour period, with 50 near-misses between pedestrians and automobiles. Making this zone “pedestrian first” will significantly enhance pedestrian safety with a small inconvenience for vehicles, which will be diverted one block from Shortlidge to Bigler for full north-south access through campus. At this point it seems most prudent to maintain this through-traffic closure full-time to maximize pedestrian safety in this zone.
