The new and affordable downtown parking option for Predators games added a thrill to tonight's 4-3 shootout victory.
The city of Nashville and Park It! Downtown have teamed up and fans are the winners. My pal Scott Tansey and I rolled into Lot R at LP field this evening around 5:45 and were quickly directed to a space, parked and hopped a shuttle for $3 apiece that dropped us off less than a block from Bridgestone Arena. The attendants were friendly, the shuttle buses were comfortable and clean, and the whole process moved swiftly. On the way out, the buses were lined up at the corner and whisked us back over the river. There wasn't even a jam getting out of the lot and onto the interstate.
The shuttle bus folks said there weren't many concert goers - maybe 60 cars or so - that used Lot R Monday night for the Muse concert at Bridgestone Arena. Hockey fans, on the other hand, were fired up and excited about this alternative to the downtown snarl and the Central Parking rip off game. Hundreds of cars came to Lot R - which offers over a thousand spaces.
Here's the bottom line: If you've got the time and your gang is not afraid to walk across the pedestrian bridge, this is a parking power play. You can even claim you got your exercise in. If you need to use the shuttle, perhaps because you have some little ones along or the weather is bad, it may add up to the cost of a downtown parking lot. Still, it's less of a hassle than navigating the construction zone and vying for one of the few spots left downtown. I'm going to walk it Thursday night and see how that goes.
The Park It! folks say the city is committed to this option through May when they'll evaluate how it's going. I'm rooting for it to continue.
