The University of Winnipeg is launching a pilot project at its on-campus gym offering specific time slots to female and non-binary users.

The project, announced Wednesday, will run from September to December of 2017.

This comes after the University of Winnipeg Students’ Association launched its Inclusive Gym Initiative campaign in May of 2016. It included a survey of 756 staff and students with questions geared towards the accessibility of the Bill Wedlake Fitness Centre, the university’s on-campus gym.

It found 51.5 per cent of women who answered didn’t feel safe or comfortable using the gym. The survey also found similar responses from some members of the LGBTQ community, visible minorities, and people with disabilities.

As a result, the UWSA made six recommendations to the school in October, which included implementing reserved gym hours for people who identify as cis or trans women or as non-binary.

The university said Wednesday, a customer satisfaction survey will be circulated during the project, and front-line gym staff will be trained on the school’s sexual misconduct protocol. The gym is also looking at space allocation to alleviate crowding during peak gym hours.

An evaluation of the project will also be shared with the students’ association, the university said.