The Ins and Outs of Move-in 2017
Everything you need to know about street closures, parking restrictions, and more
BU’s annual student Move-in week is a good news/annoying news affair this year. Annoying first: lingering cleanup from the Commonwealth Avenue bridge replacement, which ended earlier this month, and ongoing construction of new bicycle lanes on Comm Ave could spell “minor delays” for commuters, warns Lieutenant Robert Casey of the Boston University Police Department.
The good news? “The Red Sox will be out of town until Labor Day,” September 4, says Marc Robillard, executive director for auxiliary services, sparing most families from having to joust with baseball-related traffic.
Casey isn’t concerned that BU families will trip over concert-goers coming for Lady Gaga, who performs at Fenway Park on Friday and Saturday, September 1 and 2, starting both nights at 6:30 p.m. Move-in activities taper off after 6 p.m., he says, so “we should have minimal traffic disruptions.”
BU expects to house 11,500 students this fall, up just slightly from last year’s total. The first 1,500 are expected to arrive Monday, August 28, Robillard says. That initial influx includes freshmen and transfer students checking in for this year’s First-Year Student Outreach Project (FYSOP), the Community Service Center program that brings new students to campus one week early to participate in community service projects across the city.
Early Move-in is on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday of this week between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. Freshman and new student Move-in is Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. and Sunday from 9 a.m. to noon.
The busiest day will be Wednesday, August 30, “when students who need to attend Orientation arrive,” says Robillard. “This is a large group of mostly international students.” Counting new and continuing Terriers, he expects more than 2,900 students that day.
A special Move-in weekend shuttle bus will run up and down Commonwealth Avenue on Saturday and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., stopping at 13 locations between Kenmore Square and Agganis Arena. This is in addition to the Saturday daytime BU Shuttle (BUS), which travels between the Charles River Campus and the Medical Campus.
The annual Matriculation ceremony—the official welcome for the 3,490 members of the Class of 2021—is at 2 p.m. on Sunday, September 3, at Agganis Arena, preceded by a procession along Comm Ave by freshmen. The procession kicks off at 1 p.m. from students’ residence halls.
During Move-in week, the BU Police will reroute traffic at specific spots across campus, and officers will be on hand to direct drivers during the following changes:
Bay State Road (Beacon Street to Granby Street)
From Wednesday, August 30, through Monday, September 4, Bay State Road will be closed to through traffic from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Only residents, delivery trucks, and students moving in to BU will be allowed access.
700 Commonwealth Ave. (Warren Towers)
To keep the bicycle lane open, no vehicles are allowed to unload in front of Warren Towers. Access will be through the Warren Towers garage only, which is accessible off of Hinsdale Street. There will be limited parking for faculty and staff parking permit holders from Monday, August 28, through Sunday, September 3.
South Campus
On August 28, and from Wednesday, August 30, through Monday, September 4, from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., Buswell Street will be converted to one-way, going west from Park Drive to St. Mary’s Street, and going east from Park Drive to Mountfort Street.
BU Bridge and University Road
On Sunday, September 3, the BU Bridge and University Road will be closed for a period of time between 1 and 2 p.m. to accommodate the thousands of freshmen proceeding from East Campus to Agganis Arena for Matriculation.
Harry Agganis Way and Buick Street
From Saturday, September 2, through Monday, September 4, Student Village residents moving into 33 Harry Agganis Way or 10 Buick St. will be directed to park in the Agganis Arena garage.
On Sunday, September 3, Harry Agganis Way and Buick Street will be closed from 1 to 3:30 p.m. for Matriculation. There will be no vehicle access for students moving into 33 Harry Agganis Way and 10 Buick St. during that time.
The Agganis Arena C-2 lot (the lower outdoor service lot) will be closed to faculty and staff parking permit holders Monday, August 28, through Sunday, September 3.
Babcock Street
On Saturday, September 2, and Sunday, September 3, West Campus students moving into Claflin, Sleeper, and Rich Halls will be directed to park in the Langsam Garage and outer lot; the garage entrance is on Gardner Street. Students moving into 1019 Commonwealth Avenue can park in the garage or in metered spaces.
The Langsam Garage and outer lot will have limited spaces for faculty and staff parking permit holders from Monday, August 28, through Sunday, September 3.
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