Thousands of students will be returning to UConn campuses over the coming few days, including about 12,400 moving into Storrs residence halls and about 260 who will be the first occupants of UConn Stamford’s new student housing.

Early arrivals for the 2017-18 academic year began last weekend at Storrs. Freshmen start moving in to residence halls at 7 a.m. Friday, followed by upperclassmen and transfer students over the weekend.

Overall, about 23,000 undergraduate students will start classes Monday at Storrs and the regional campuses. Many thousands of additional students are also enrolled at other locations in UConn’s schools of law, medicine, and dental medicine.

Logistics of the move-in weekend on the Storrs campus are expected to be more challenging than usual due to road construction, notably the closure of the Route 195 entrance into campus at North Eagleville Road and one-way traffic patterns on part of that campus road.

The construction is part of a multi-year project necessary to replace aging pipes and other underground infrastructure throughout campus. The University has scheduled as much of the work as possible during summer, but the extensive scope of the project made it impossible to conclude before the start of classes or to reopen the parts of North Eagleville Road that remain under construction.

Students moving to Storrs are being asked to pay special attention to guidance from the University to help make their move-in process easier amid the construction process.

Specifics on traffic restrictions and staged check-in areas have been provided on the UConn Office of Residential Life’s arrival information website and sent directly to students, and signs will be posted that apply to the various residential areas.

The University also is reminding drivers that they should not rely on GPS, because those mapping services would not reflect the traffic patterns and detours necessitated by construction and move-in schedules.

For instance, all traffic is one-way on Alumni Drive between Hillside Road and Hilltop Apartments this week. University officials suggest avoiding the area if possible.

People moving into the Hilltop area and to the North and Northwest complexes are advised to enter the campus from Discovery Drive, which connects to Route 44 at its northern end and carries traffic directly toward the heart of campus.

Since the Storrs campus population will jump significantly this week – particularly on Friday and over the weekend – UConn Police are reminding drivers and pedestrians to exercise caution and extend consideration for one another.

Drivers must always yield to pedestrians, and pedestrians should always use crosswalks where available. Those rules apply not only at UConn’s Storrs campus, but also on the city and town roads around UConn’s regional campuses.

To help minimize traffic during the move-in days, the University has encouraged supervisors to allow employees to work from home or take a vacation day on Friday if possible, as long as it does not disrupt UConn’s ability to conduct its business and support the incoming students.

Drivers who are not part of move-in or work-related traffic are being encouraged to use alternate routes on and around the Storrs campus during daylight hours on Friday and over the weekend to avoid delays from the heavier-than-usual traffic and detours.

UConn buses will not operate on Friday, but will run over the weekend and resume their regular weekday schedule early Monday morning. Some routes have changed, particularly in light of the ongoing construction, so check the Transportation Services web page for updated lines and stops. The University’s Parking Services office provides information on its site (www.park.uconn.edu/) about parking options and passes at various campuses, rules and regulations, and the policy for the proper use of motor bikes, mopeds, and scooters on campus.

Students and their families have also been invited to sign up for a text messaging initiative in which they will receive updates over the weekend from UConn officials about traffic conditions, delays, or other unexpected occurrences that could affect their move-in plans.