Anyone following the Austin City Council saga of 2018, leading Austin FC and the city to partner on what’s now officially known as Q2 Stadium, knows that the site plan had limited parking spots. A parking and mobility plan released by the club today reinforces that, encouraging bus riding, biking, and ride-sharing to the stadium as part of that plan, and providing an offsite parking plan for those who want to take their cars to the match.
While there are a limited number of parking spots at the 24-acre McKalla Place site where the stadium’s been built, those spaces are already spoken for. As the club phrased it in its release, “Pre-purchased on-site parking for all Austin FC regular-season home matches at Q2 Stadium has already been secured by various permit holders through the purchase of certain season ticket products, and the on-site pre-paid parking lots for permit holders reside in the Southwest, East, and Northwest Lots.”
The club estimates approximately 5,000 parking spaces will be required on match days beyond the stadium’s on-site already reserved offerings. The club is looking to do that via a partnership with Pavemint, allowing people to reserve and pre-pay for match parking within a mile of Q2 Stadium.
The closest option for the June 19 opener, according to the site, is a gravel lot west of the stadium fronting Burnet, familiar to construction workers and fans who have made the pilgrimage to the stadium site during its evolution, for $35 a spot. There’s also a garage in the Domain, at 3221 Feathergrass Court, where parking is $22 — with an indication that there will be a shuttle service from the site to the stadium.
The stadium-opening June 16 match between the women’s national teams from the U.S. and Nigeria is offering onsite parking in the Southwest, East, and Northwest Lots through Pavemint, though those spots are $50 each, compared to $40 for the gravel lot and $25 for the Domain garage.
The club conveyed a number of other options in its Wednesday release, including bus service at least every eight minutes on matchdays via MetroRapid route 803, dropping off fans where Burnet Road intersects with the newly-constructed Bright Verde Way. The stadium will also be served by a regularly-running Capital Metro route 3 bus, and an increased-frequency 383, running every 15 minutes prior to the start of a match. The 383 serves two nearby Park & Ride stations: North Lamar Transit Center and Pavilion Park & Ride. Additionally, Route 392 will operate every 20 minutes between Q2 Stadium and Tech Ridge Transit Center.
After matches, extra CapMetro buses will be stationed on the west side of Burnet Road to serve the 803 southbound route.
While there will eventually be a Red Line station directly next to Q2 Stadium, which was officially announced yesterday, the current Kramer Station stop is an option within a short walk of the stadium.
For those planning to take rideshare services including Lyft and Uber, there will be a dedicated rideshare drop-off point on the west side of Q2 Stadium, with post-match pick-up areas north and south of the stadium on Brockton Drive and Rutland Drive.
Q2 Stadium will also allow private shuttles with a dedicated drop-off and pick-up area on the north end of the stadium. Fans can pre-register private shuttle drop-off at Q2 Stadium within 72 hours of each event through an online form.
The club also announced, for those planning to bike to matches, that a bike valet on the east side of the stadium will be available to check in bikes, though there were no specifics in the release about how much time before or after a match they’d be accessible, or if there would be a self-park option for bikes.
“Pre-planning your trip to Q2 Stadium will be an important step for all guests,” Austin FC president Andy Loughnane said via the release. “Public transportation options have been increased with the support of CapMetro, and our partnership with Pavemint will now provide access to pre-paid parking spaces, which can be reserved well in advance of your arrival.”
What’s not yet clear is how many enterprising local businesses around Q2 will try to provide additional parking solutions, or how many people will try to venture out in their cars and test their luck.
But it’s clear from the club’s messaging that it’s trying to siphon drivers to parking spots through the Pavemint partnership, and steering people toward CapMetro and rideshare to prevent the nightmare scenarios that some neighborhood activists painted as they hoped to block the stadium’s approval.