COLLEGE STATION, Aug. 16, 2010 – Aggies by the thousands will soon return to the campus in preparation for the beginning of fall classes on Aug. 30, and university officials have designated Sunday (Aug. 22) as Residence Hall Move-In Assistance Day.

The program, developed by the Department of Residence Life, is an effort to welcome new and returning students and their parents by helping them move personal belongings into the residence halls, Residence Life officials note.

They say that a survey conducted over the past few years shows that, for various reasons, the majority of residents prefer to move into the halls on a Sunday. This can cause some traffic congestion, and officials have taken that into account.

As in years past, extra resources will be devoted to move-in day to make things easier for new and returning students and their parents. University transportation officials and police officers add that teams of volunteers will be on hand to welcome and assist students and parents and their help will ensure unloading goes as quickly as possible and the designated unloading zones near the residence halls do not get too congested.

The Residence Life Department, along with representatives from University Police, the Recycling Center, Dining Services, Transportation Services, Landscape Services, Student Life, the Corps of Cadets and various members of the administration, faculty and staff began planning for this day not long after the last move-in.

The teams of move-in volunteers – including administrators, faculty, staff and students – will be on duty in specific areas from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday. Texas A&M President R. Bowen Loftin will also be there between 8 and 10 a.m. to welcome the Aggies.

Members of the volunteer move-in teams will wear distinctive T-shirts so students and parents will easily recognize them. They will help unload vehicles as they pull up into unloading zones. The volunteers will also help load carts and dollies, available at no charge for those moving into the residence halls, and help students get their belongings to their rooms. As a concession to the summer heat, Dining Services will set up refreshment stations in strategic locations offering free bottles of water. They advise the students and their families that, although not all dining facilities will be open during move-in, a list of those that are open is at http://dining.tamu.edu/ .

Additional traffic control will be added in highly congested areas during peak times but drivers in the campus community should expect delays during this peak traffic period. One-hour temporary curbside parking will be allowed in designated campus locations in an effort to ease the congestion, Transportation Services officials add. These areas will be marked with signs and orange barrels.

Bicyclists are encouraged to use caution, as bike lanes may be obstructed during move-in week (Aug. 23-29). Move-in maps are available online at http://transport.tamu.edu/specialevents/move.aspx . These maps give clear parking instructions and show the locations of recycling stations for disposing of empty boxes, as well as information and refreshment stations. Recycling officials note that empty boxes must be placed in one of the designated bins.

On the central and south areas of campus, students and parents will have the opportunity to use Lubbock Street from Coke Street to Spence Street as a temporary unloading zone. Mosher Lane behind the Commons also will be available for unloading. Lubbock Street will be controlled by Transportation Services officers, and will be one-way east with parking allowed curbside between Nagle and Spence.

Monday through Friday, portions of Coke Street will also be used for temporary bus stops because of construction in the area; Transportation Services officers will be at the stops to assist withtraffic.

The officers also will control access to Lubbock Street, and it will be one-way eastbound with parking allowed curbside. Vehicles will exit Lubbock by passing in front of the Commons. The same controlled-access process will be used on Mosher Lane in the rear of the Commons, allowing vehicles to enter Mosher Lane from Bizzell Street and exit adjacent to the Southside Parking Garage onto Lewis Street near Parking Area 40.

On the north area of campus, Parking Area 30 will be designated and marked as a temporary unloading zone. Asbury, Houston and Hogg streets will be controlled by Transportation Services officers, with parking allowed curbside for unloading.

Since all unloading zones are one-hour parking only, Transportation Services will provide free move-in shuttles from Reed Arena Lot 100 to the Northside and Southside areas for parents and other visitors. These shuttles will run Sunday (Aug. 22) from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Monday through Wednesday (Aug. 23-25). Break Service will run Monday through Friday (Aug. 23-27) from 7 a.m. through 6 p.m. There is no shuttle service Aug. 28-29.

Once a vehicle is unloaded, it can be moved to PA100 and the driver can ride a shuttle back to the residence hall.

For additional information about residence hall check-in, contact the Housing Assignments Office toll-free at 888-451-3896. This office can also be reached at housing@tamu.edu or at http://reslife.tamu.edu . Transportation Services may also be contacted at parking@tamu.edu or by calling 862-PARK.