By Cassidey Kavathas, News Editor
Winter weather has graced Western New York and the Greater Olean area leaving St. Bonaventure University stuck in the cold, covered in snow and ice. This has led to some unfavorable conditions to walk around campus heading to class or to meet up with peers.
“It’s icy and slushy and I slip all the time,” said Caitlyn Slater, a freshman childhood and early childhood education major. “I have to go to class earlier than planned to make sure I can get there safely.”
With campus mainly consisting of students whose main mode of transportation is walking, slippery sidewalks can be a real hazard, according to students.
“While I’m walking, I have to make sure that I’m not walking at a fast pace because if I do I might fall,” said Priscilla Contreras, a senior journalism and english double major. “Luckily I haven’t fallen on my way to class. I somehow manage to leave my apartment early so that I’m not speed walking when I’m on my way.”
The facilities department grounds crew begins clearing snow and ice at 6 a.m. on weekdays when necessary. On weekends, a partial staff is scheduled unless there is a major snow event in the forecast.
“Between Safety and Security and the facilities department, the campus roads and sidewalks are constantly monitored,” said Jared Smith, the director of facilities at Bonaventure.
Though every place on campus is of equal importance for ice and snow removal, the ground crew starts where traffic and schedules allow.
“On a typical weekday morning, the grounds crew will start removing snow on the west side of campus before the parking lots become filled to prepare for the start of classes,” said Smith. “Then the priority moves to the east side ofcampus as some of the vehicles have now cleared out while students are in class.”
Snow removal begins near Shay and Loughlen Hall which is on the west side of campus and then moves across campus ending at the townhouses.
Due to the townhouses being on the outskirts of campus, the trails and roads aren’t as thoroughly plowed and salted in the morning which can make the commute harder for some.
“I don’t own a car, so I walk on the trail to get to classes in the morning,” said John Conlon, a senior english major who lives in townhouse 24. “When I reach campus, things are generally okay; getting there is the hard part. The trail is not always clear. Even when it is, I still can’t access it without stepping through the grass, meaning my boots are often filled with snow first thing in the morning.”
Contreras also lives in the townhouses and shares a similar experience with Conlon.
“[Unsafe sidewalk conditions] only happen in the morning,” said Contreras. “By the time I get home the sidewalks are pretty clear.”
The cold and unsafe conditions have even kept students from making the trek around campus for both class and other activities.
“Admittedly, there have been days that I have missed classes or attended remotely because I don’t feel like dealing with the conditions of my commute,” said Conlon. Contreras shares a similar experience.
“There have been days where it has been snowing so badly that I don’t want to get out of bed because I fear that the sidewalks will be slippery,” she said
The main concern for most students is icy sidewalks.
“The ice patches are kind of excessive,” said Slater. “They need more salt.”
Still students remain optimistic that snow removal will go smoothly, as methods of treating the weather gradually improve.
“I feel like this semester the sidewalks are so much better compared to last semester,” said Contreras.
