The land bridge connecting the parking lot on Southern Avenue and the University of Memphis campus opened Aug. 21 for general parking use by students, teachers and visitors.
The long-awaited bridge began construction in April 2018 after concerns about students dangerously jumping through or crawling under stopped trains rose to the UofM administration's attention as early as 2014.
Tony Poteet, the campus chief planning officer, said after much anticipation, traffic delays and nonstop construction, he expects that the university community will be excited for the bridges completion.
“It is going to be a great safety aspect to our campus,” Poteet said. “It will make the whole campus more accessible and convenient, rather than having to cross the railroad tracks that way.”
Poteet and his team set out with the goal to complete the bridge one week before school started. He said the process of the construction became difficult to the point where a lot of moving parts had to be approved before crossing the railroad in Memphis.
“We had a tremendous amount of utilities where we had to work with MLGW,” Poteet said. “We had to reroute gas, water and drainage lines that were located in the street and then there was a tremendous amount of requirements for clearance of the railroad.”
Poteet said students who use the Rec Center or live at the Gathers would have easier access to the bridge and a safer parking area at night.
Students such as Sam Morgan, who works in the Rec Center at the front desk student worker, and Hakim McCray, a music business major who lives in South Hall, look forward to the benefits of both easier access to facilities across Southern Avenue and the ability to avoid incoming trains.
“The main thing is that if the bridge is there, students have another way of getting here,” Morgan said. “People who work here, they will get on here on time because sometimes the train stops and students and workers alike will have to wait.”
To McCray, the pedestrian bridge represents a solution to what used to be, long walking distances with a chance of interruption.
“I have always wondered why is South so far away from everything, and when the train stops I always get caught while everyone across would not,” McCray said. “However, with this bridge, I am very excited.”
Thomas Shane, history major, who uses the general parking lot, said during the bridge construction would give him a peace of mind while crossing the street onto Southern.
“I did not know what it was being used for at the beginning, but it felt good walking through the road without cars coming by,” Shane said.
