"We have a pretty good idea of what we might find here and then what we're looking for is the actual evidence of things that have been preserved," archaeologist Heather Price said.
The work in the parking lot will not impact traffic or nearby businesses. Already they have uncovered an old wood timber. The excavation will go down 12 feet.
"This area would have had a yard where coal was stored," Price said.
The archaeologists will move to the west side of the new terminal site in August. That parking lot has great potential; thousands of people lived there in densely packed houses.
Eventually artifacts will be on display in the new terminal building.
The temporary terminal will finally open between Beale, Main, Howard and Folsom streets on August 7. That day, they will start tearing down these bus ramps that lead to the old terminal. The demolition will be done at night, so it should not affect traffic, but streets will be closed during weekends.
It will take seven years of construction to create this vision of a future transportation hub for buses, trains, high speed rail, complete with homes, shops and gardens. It is supposed to be finished in 2017.
