Where will fans park around downtown Royals stadium? New details, plus traffic study
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Transportation screening estimates 18,257 total parking spaces for the stadium site.
- Screening projects up to 67% of attendees would arrive by car for events.
- Study specifically calls for reconstructing two nearby interchanges to add lanes.
As Crown Center moves forward with a development plan to remake the district with a downtown Royals baseball stadium, new documents offer more details about how parking and traffic could work.
Attached to a rezoning application for the plan is a “transportation screening” offering a high-level view of “critical issues.” The document says an assessment focusing on local streets could be finished in July, while a look at impacts to the highway system could run through December.
Of note, the screening says the regional highway network “largely” has the capacity to handle heavy event traffic.
But it notes the number of direct ramps off the highway to and from the site is “limited.” And it calls two nearby highway access points — Interstate 35 at West Pennway Street and 20th Street alongside U.S. 71 Highway at 22nd Street — “challenging.”
The study calls for reconstructing those interchanges, which could include adding lanes for vehicles to enter or exit the highway.
“Improvements will be needed at specific interchanges,” the study says. “Additional north/south local network capacity may be necessary to facilitate traffic to the site.”
Parking at new Royals stadium
The study suggests 8,219 parking spaces at Crown Center and 10,038 parking spaces off-site, at various locations near the stadium, could serve the site for a total parking supply for 18,257 spaces.
It anticipates that up to 67% of attendees would arrive by car. 15% would arrive by rideshare, such as Uber, while 10% would bike or walk.
Eight percent of people could arrive by streetcar or bus.
The study also floats possible changes to local streets, such as adding pedestrian crossings over or under 22nd Street, so pedestrians don’t have to cross the street directly; narrowing Pershing Road to shorten pedestrian crossings; and upgrading traffic signals.
The study contemplates which routes to encourage people arriving by car to use and which to discourage as they navigate the highways. It also considers parking zones based on where vehicles are arriving from to separate traffic.
Study and discussion about parking and transportation for the future Royals stadium will continue.