UF will begin to fully enforce its vehicle-restricted areas on campus by Jan. 23.
The restricted zone went into effect Monday. It will include parts of Stadium Road, Newell Drive, Union Road and Buckman Drive. Restrictions will be active weekdays from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and the four entry points to the zone will be marked with a sign and flashing red light.
The University Police Department will enforce the restrictions starting with an initial educational phase that began Jan. 3. Officers will move into the warning phase Jan. 16 and shift to the enforcement phase Jan. 23.
The restrictions were temporarily lifted at the start of Spring 2021 to allow for the redirection of traffic around major campus construction, UF spokesperson Cynthia Roldan said.
“The vehicle-restricted zone is among several ongoing or completed initiatives aimed at making the campus more pedestrian and bicycle friendly,” Roldan said.
Personal automobiles, scooters and motorcycles and rideshare vehicles will be banned, according to UF’s announcement. Bicycles, mobility devices, transit vehicles, emergency vehicles, commercial vehicles, and official UF vehicles will be allowed.
UPD will primarily focus on education, but repeated violations may result in citations, according to UF.
Christian Casale contributed to this story.
Contact Claire at cgrunewald@alligator.org. Follow her on Twitter @grunewaldclaire.
Claire Grunewald is a third-year journalism major and a metro reporter for The Alligator. In addition to writing, she enjoys going to the beach and discovering new music.