Truck access to McMaster

A vote at Hamilton city council Wednesday night means some changes to the way trucks access the McMaster campus. The city passed a bylaw that eliminates King Street as a truck route and puts restrictions on the number of trucks that can use the Sterling Street entrance.

“We have offered numerous compromises over the past year-and-a-half to help ease the truck traffic through the Sterling entrance to minimize the impact trucks have on our neighbours,” said Roger Trull, vice-president of University Advancement. It has been particularly challenging because of the construction of the athletics complex, including the stadium.

Trull said the decision by city council wasn't surprising, but what was surprising was that council was told that the temporary exemption to the bylaw to allow limited trucks on Forsyth until the end of January was the result of a compromise between the University, the neighbourhood and the city.

“Last night's meeting was the first time we saw the document, which is certainly not the kind of positive consultation that leads to long-term solutions.”

The University's concern is that it needs to have access to the Sterling Street entrance on an ongoing basis, not just until the end of January. Without that access, all trucks to campus will have to be routed through the middle of campus, which is a safety hazard for students, faculty, staff and visitors to campus.

McMaster Students Union president Ryan Moran attended the city council meeting with a group of McMaster student leaders. “What is put at risk by this compromise is not simply the safety of students, staff, faculty and visitors of McMaster, but also the collaborative relationship that we'd like to believe we have with both this community and the city.”

“We will make the changes required to follow the new regulations,” said Trull, “but we will also be reviewing our options about how to move forward based on the University's need to protect safety and to ensure McMaster can continue to effectively function.”