Update: There are 50 – 3 hour parking spaces available in the Austin Street lot and 20 free 30 minute spaces in the Star Market Lot as well as 100 spaces on Jackson Street for long term parking.
3 hour parking:
50 public parking spaces remain open in the Austin Street Parking Lot.
Pay at the kiosk or use the convenient Passport parking app.
Free 30 minute parking:
There are also 20 complimentary spaces at Star Market for 30-minute parking.
In addition, there are 100 complimentary long-term parking spaces available at 100 Jackson Road, with free shuttle service) running approximately every 20 minutes on weekdays from 6:30 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., and on Saturdays from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m
Please share your experiences both with parking and supporting our local businesses.
As a member of the Highlands Area Council, I like to boost businesses in our village, but I’ll admit to liking many of the small businesses in Newtonville. I just hope this works, but I’m concerned that at least some of these businesses may be short changed if it takes a long time to make the round trip from the shuttle stops to Walnut Street. I’m thinking of places like Starbucks, Howell’s Coffee, CVS and others that might get bypassed by customers because nice alternatives are close by in adjacent villages. It will be discouraging if people start getting in the habit of not thinking of Newtonville small businesses because of real or perceived time constraints. 20 minutes may seem short to some, but it’s really 40 minutes if it involves a round trip. Again, I don’t know how many drivers would have to use these fringe lots. I hope someone has this information.
I have a feeling this will be a pretty big waste. I’d like to see the cost divided by the final ridership numbers. Then compare that to the cost of, say an in-city Uberpool/Lyftpool subsidy to get people over there.
That Stop and Shop lot seems to be always empty, it’s a shame something couldn’t have been worked there.. Maybe the city could have just paid off whoever owns it..
Or you know you could walk or bike to our village. Or take the 59 or the 553, 554, or 556 as well! Lots of options already existing that would likely be far faster than driving to a park and ride lot and taking a bus back. That said I expect the shuttle is more for employees of the businesses staying all day rather than customers, at least I hope it is being advertised like that…
Excellent point, John P!
What happened to those 50 car parking spots contiguous to the construction site that were promised ? Too many construction trailers? Not enough room to stage construction? Not enough room for excavation spoil?
Couldn’t fit the ports potty’s?
The contractor couldn’t get a construction bond with the public parking that close ? What happened ?
We were lied to!
I apologize for hurrying when I posted the above. I should have realized the map was unreadable and that it was generally a mess. Please take another look.
Oops my bad. There was a wall of excavation material yesterday obscuring view of parking from Austin Street.
Access to the 50 spaces ( via now one way Phillip Bram Way,), that do now currently exist, is now from Highland Avenue only. Exit only to Austin Street.
I don’t see any porta potty’s or construction trailers here yet. It will be interesting to see how they are incorporated.
Blueprintbill:
Thank you for reposting Bill and correcting. Here is where I think they can do better. You aren’t the only one missing that temporary lot. They should have better signage. They should ask the NAC to send out a parking email. They should put notices in the various shops about the shuttle. And I’d post someone to watch for the Shaw parking spaces, since a bunch of folks staying FAR longer than 30 minutes….
All in all though, the parking lot is gone, and the world still turns on its axis. I’m a frequent user of the village both by foot and car, and it is definitely more crowded, but I think it is going to be ok. Turnover is quick enough that I’ve not had to wait more than a few minutes for a spot. Definitely a bit of a pain, definitely not as bad as West Newton.
Also, I think the shuttle will be great for employees, completely useless for shoppers. I mean 100% useless for shoppers. I mean, you can park along washington street and walk pretty easily….
The only shop that I will continue to go to is the UPS store, bc of the excellent service. I will go to other villages for CVS etc. Not worth the parking hassle.
Rick:
Really? I’ve been using the village daily since the change. Parked there multiple times (many times in the morning and between 5 and 7 pm when it is busiest). The longest I’d had to wait to find a spot in 3 minutes. Still way easier than Newton Centre.
I’m sure there will be some loss of ease of parking, but I’m honestly not feeling the pain too much. Those extra spaces in the Shaw’s parking lot are very helpful…
Certainly not saying it is perfect or easy, but let’s not throw out the baby with the bathwater either…
for the record, there are small lots behind Ahi/Brewer’s coalition, Rox Diner and the banks. Another small lot behind the construction. And 25 spaces or so at Shaw’s.