Know Where to Go on Keele Campus

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When you’re navigating a new place, having a map is great, but being able to understand that map is even better. York U’s Keele Campus map offers a lot of great information to new students exploring the campus. Its PDF format offers users easy access when searching for a building in the campus directory, looking up the closest information station and finding the nearest transit stop (plus you can save data on your phone by skipping Google Maps).

We at the #YUBlog are here to offer you some hard-earned tips and tricks about the best ways to use the Keele Campus map to help guide your way!

You Are Here: A Guide to the York U Campus Map

First of all, you should know that the York University map is based on a letter-number grid system. The left and right sides of the map have the letters A to G, while the top and bottom of the map are numbers going from 1 to 9. Each building is then assigned a letter-number combination beside its acronym for ease of identification.

Side-note: As a new York U student, you’ll soon become fluent in the language of building acronyms that are used across the University! For example, the Bennett Centre for Student Services’ acronym is BCS and their letter-number code is E7. This combination will help you navigate the grid system.

Taking our cue from elementary multiplication tables, you’ll be able to use the campus directory’s grid code to find a specific building on the map. For instance, following the letter “D” and the number “6” helps you spot York Lanes, a one-stop shop that offers meal plan-approved restaurants, dental and medical offices, a hair and nail salon, a Shoppers Drug Mart, the York University Bookstore and more!

The Campus Directory

With this knowledge in hand, the best way to use the map is by following the alphabetical campus directory. Split into nine sections, the campus directory is colour-coded to help distinguish between:

• Academic, Administrative & Commercial Buildings
• Residences & Apartments
• Parking Garages – Visitors
• Parking Lots – Visitors
• Parking Lots – Reserved
• Visual Performance Arts Facilities
• Sport & Recreation Facilities
• Historical Houses
• Non-York U Buildings.

These categories come in handy when trying to find your classes, because most of your courses will fall under one category: Academic, Administrative & Commercial Buildings.

As a general rule, the first letters of the building’s name are usually used in those acronyms. For example, Vari Hall becomes VH, Curtis Lecture Hall becomes CLH, Health, Nursing and Environmental Studies becomes HNE. There are, of course, exceptions to this (e.g. Accolade East is ACE, Atkinson is ATK, etc.), but this is a good starting off point. Keep these acronyms in mind, because you’ll see them again in your course schedules throughout your time at York U!

Success tip: When asking directions, be aware that some of the building names change! For example, the Victor Phillip Dahdaleh Building (DB) used to be called the Technology Enhanced Learning (TEL) building a few years ago. Even now, the restaurant in the Dahdaleh Building is still called the TEL Cafe and many upper-year students and professors continue to refer to the building as TEL.

The last key feature of the campus directory is the building numbers. To confirm that you’ve found the right building on the map, check the assigned number to the left of the building’s name on the campus directory. Some important building numbers to keep in mind are 25 (Scott Library – one of York U’s main studying hubs), 100 (the York University Line 1 subway station – conveniently located in the heart of campus) and 101 (the Pioneer Village subway station – the new home of the Toronto Transit Commission [TTC] bus loop). See if you can find them on the map below!

The Legend

The campus directory plays an important role in the Keele Campus map, as does the legend. The legend is where you’ll see all of the transportation, safety and other miscellaneous symbols: these come in handy if you’re rushing and looking for the nearest Züm, YRT or Viva stops (don’t worry, we’ve all been there)!

Whether you’re a commuter or a resident, eventually we all need to find the public transit access points. Luckily, the Toronto Transit Commission recently opened two Line 1 subway stops on campus: York University and Pioneer Village. This is an especially important change for us York U Lions, because the direct subway connection helps with incoming and outgoing commute times!

Speaking of commuters, a few of York U’s Parking Services’ locations are the top three symbols in the legend!  Did you know that there are three different types of parking on campus?

1. Visitor Parking (P)
2. Reserved Parking (R)
3. Parking Garage (G)

Keep these symbols in mind, because you’ll only be able to park in the reserved parking lots if you have a permit! As seen by the picture below, York University’s parking options are found all over campus. Learn more about the parking rates and permits for another commuting option.

The subway stations and parking services aren’t the only important transportation symbols in the legend: the purple triangle and the red start in front of Vari Hall (30) are the Glendon-Keele Shuttle & Go Train Shuttle stops and the Village Shuttle Pick-up location! Want to know where to go once you reach Glendon? Take a look at the Glendon Campus map and #YUBlog’s two-part series on Glendon!

In addition to these transportation points, the legend also identifies York U’s emergency phones and community safety locations. Learn more about York U’s safety features!

On top of this, the Keele Campus Maps & Directions site offers different versions of their map: from the Accessibility Map to the AirYork Plus Map and Water Refill Stations Map, York University helps you find what you need.

So there you have it! No matter where you need to go around campus, you’ll be able to find your way with these quick and easy tips and tricks. To gain first-hand experience walking around campus, check out York U’s Keele and Glendon campus tours!