A parking lot expansion is in the works for Guelph Transit, though the service is slated to move into a new facility in a few years.
City officials issued a request for proposals to increase the size of the Watson Road South parking lot on July 12, with a closing date of Aug 1.
“Guelph Transit … has limited parking space for administration staff, transit operators and fleet staff,” said city communications officer Beth Bowles via email. “Parking space has been a challenge for many years and has resulted in having staff park on the road, which does not have sidewalks or a crosswalk.”
Guelph Transit is set to move into a planned 40,000-square-metre facility, along with the city’s general fleet services, on city-owned lands along Dunlop Drive beside the Waste Resource Innovation Centre, near the intersection of Stone Road East and Watson Parkway South.
That project was approved by council last fall with a $201 million budget.
“This project is still in (the) design phase and occupancy is not expected until 2029 or 2030 at the earliest. The parking lot expansion will be completed in 2024 or early 2025,” explained Bowles, adding the larger lot will “allow Guelph Transit employees and fleet to utilize the parking lot … until the new site is constructed. The goal is to reduce street parking.”
The cost of the parking lot expansion is included in nearly $2.7 million of renovations and “life cycle renewal” projects at the Watson Road facility between 2024 and 2028.
As noted in the request for proposals, the parking lot project includes grading, storm water drainage, installation of a stormwater management tank, asphalt paving, lighting and landscaping.
