HYANNIS – Parking in downtown Hyannis was a major topic of discussion at last month’s Cape Cod Regional Transit Authority Advisory Board Meeting.
Authority administrator Tom Cahir reported on the progress of the Transit Oriented Development project which guides development for the Hyannis Transportation Center from the short term to long term.
The short term efforts of the transit authority are focused on parking agreements with ferry services.
Long term projects include the possibility of a parking garage.
Barnstable Assistant Town Manager Mark Ells says the transit authority has a lot of land from Center Street to Route 28 that could be used to increase parking in the downtown area.
“They really do have an opportunity there to look at parking either on the ground or structured,” Ells said.
The transit authority also gave an update on the new Hyannis Loop route which started in Hyannis in September.
The Hyannis Loop provides additional coverage to the Main Street and West Main Street areas of Hyannis along with more frequent service to the shopping malls on Route 132.
A major reason for the new route was that existing routes were getting overburdened and falling behind schedule.
“They were hoping that they would see some favorable numbers. They saw extremely favorable numbers,” Ells said. “They didn’t see a decrease in the routes that were already overburdened and they’ve seen a greater use of the loop since it has commenced.”
According to Ells, the transit authority believes the Hyannis Loop will be even more successful during the summer months.
The route is being paid for by a three-year grant.
By BRIAN MERCHANT, CapeCod.com NewsCenter
About CapeCod.com NewsCenter
Speak Your Mind