Motorists and bicyclists on the Cornell University campus will be greeted by a pleasant (and smooth) surprise this week. Tower Road, a main east-west route through the heart of campus, is opening ahead of schedule on its summer construction projects.

Since mid-June, the road has been closed to traffic in four different areas at various times to accommodate road improvements and utility work. Tower Road, with the exception of the section between Garden and East Avenues, is now open. The Garden Avenue extension between Tower Road and Bailey Hall is also open.

The steam and chilled water reconstruction project on Tower Road between East Avenue and Garden Avenue is running on schedule and will reopen by the second week in October.

All of the Tompkins Consolidated Area Transit (Tcat ) buses--routes 5, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 41, 42, 43, 44, 46, 50, 51, 55, 56, 80, 81, 83, 84 and 92--that have been detoured to Campus Road during the construction will go back to the regular Tower Road routes Monday, Aug 17. At that time, the bus stops will be relocated to their Tower Road locations: Corson/Mudd Hall and the Dairy Bar for eastbound routes; and at Bradfield Hall and Kennedy Hall for westbound routes. Routes that normally run on Tower Road between East Avenue and Garden Avenue will still be detouring onto Garden Avenue until the steam and chilled water reconstruction project is completed in mid-October. For all Tcat bus route, schedule and update information, call 277-RIDE, or visit its web site at www.tcatbus.com.

During the summer construction, Cornell's Commuter and Parking Services has been allowing Cornell commuters to park closer to the detoured bus stops by honoring "O" permits in the "K" and "C" areas. Due to the completion of the Tower Road projects, all "O" Permit privileges will return to normal on Monday, August 17. If you have any questions regarding this issue, contact Cornell Transportation Services at 255-4600.