Daily Bulletin, Friday, January 6, 1995

CARS AND PEOPLE:  The crosswalks on the ring road are going to be removed,
says a memo going out today from the provost's office.  Because they
don't meet traffic standards and many drivers don't recognize them,
they're considered to be more of a danger than a help.  The provost's
memo also says a "major review of traffic flow and parking" will be
starting shortly.

Here's the text of the memo, from provost Jim Kalbfleisch:

     Pedestrian crosswalks on the UW Ring Road have existed in
     their present form for many years.  They have come under
     increasing criticism because they do not conform to provincial
     standards for signage and sightlines, and are not recognized
     as crosswalks by some motorists. Also, they are often ignored or 
     improperly used by pedestrians.  In response to these concerns, the 
     Joint Health and Safety Committee recommended the establishment of 
     an ad hoc committee to develop alternatives to these crosswalks.
     
     The ad hoc committee consisted of Rudy Molinary (Chair), Mike 
     Campbell, Bruce Hutchinson, Al MacKenzie, Larry Richards, Kevin 
     Stewart, and Florence Thomlison (resource person).  It invited 
     comments from the campus community, and met several times in April, 
     May and June of 1994.  Its final report, dated June 30, 1994, is 
     available on UWinfo.
     
     In accordance with the committee's preferred solution, the
     current crosswalks will be removed and will not be replaced.
     A number of other measures will be taken to promote pedestrian 
     safety on campus, including increased signage, use of some traffic 
     calming measures, and improved traffic enforcement.  The Safety 
     Office and UW Police will be conducting an educational campaign to 
     encourage motorists, cyclists and pedestrians to exercise care and 
     courtesy while using campus roadways and walkways.
     
     The committee has also drawn attention to the need for a major 
     review of traffic flow and parking on campus.  This review is 
     particularly important in view of plans to construct the new Science 
     and Engineering building on B1 parking lot, and I expect that it will 
     get underway during the Winter term.

(The provost's office says the report on crosswalks isn't actually on
UWinfo yet, but efforts are being made to get it there.)
     
LATE FEES have started, for students who haven't managed to get themselves
registered for the winter term.  Today costs $10, and each additional
day of delay is another $3, up to January 31.  That day is the "absolute
last day to pay fees for Winter term", the registrar's office says.  "Tuition
fees or arrangements will not be accepted after this date. The winter 
academic record of students who have not paid will be deleted."

HIGH SCHOOL mathematics students, a dozen of them, are on campus today
through Monday for a "training camp" preparing to try for places on
Canada's International Mathematics Olympiad team.  The camp is jointly
sponsored by UW and the Canadian Mathematical Society.  The 1995 IMO
will be held in Canada for the first time (in mid-July at York University).

DOUBLE YOUR DISPLEASURE:  A couple of Bulletin readers took exception to
my comment yesterday that under federal government proposals, tuition
fees would "double to something like twice their current level".  We're
lucky, somebody said, that they won't be doubling to three times their
current level!  And the only defence I can think of is, that wasn't me
-- it was my evil twin who wrote that.  No: my two evil twins, both of them.

Chris Redmond
Information and Public Affairs, University of Waterloo
888-4567 ext. 3004      credmond@watserv1.uwaterloo.ca