Water Street Pedestrian Mall: Traffic and Parking Impacts

The Water Street Pedestrian Mall will officially open to pedestrian traffic from noon to 10 p.m. daily, from Adelaide Street to Prescott Street, starting Friday, July 3 until September 7. Please note:

• Water Street will be closed to traffic and parking in the four blocks included in the mall as of 8 a.m. on Friday, July 3.
• Outside of the designated mall hours, traffic in this section of Water Street will be one-way (from west to east) for deliveries and commercial access only.
• Traffic on Ayre’s Cove and McBride’s Hill will be one-way northbound. McBride’s Hill will be closed to southbound traffic.
• Motorists will have two-way access to Clift’s-Baird’s Cove for accessible parking, deliveries, and curbside pickup.
• Southbound traffic on Prescott Street will be detoured to Harbour Drive via Job’s Cove.
• Beck’s Cove will be closed except to provide two-way access to the Murray Premises and to allow delivery and curbside pickup spaces from Harbour Drive.
• Accessible parking is provided on Water Street, see further details below. 

Parking Options
There are on-street parking spaces located throughout the downtown, however motorists must look for signage when parking to ensure they are abiding by parking regulations. There are several 2-hour and 4 -hour timed parking areas that are marked with signage. Harbour Drive is PayByPhone.

Parking garages are open 24/7 at 351 Water Street and 330 Duckworth Street. The City Hall Parking Garage (10 New Gower Street) is free for parking during evenings after 6 p.m. and on weekends.

Accessible Parking
Accessible parking spaces will be marked in several designated areas on Water Street. These areas are located near Prescott Street, Clift’s Baird’s Cove, Ayre’s Cove and Bishop’s Cove. There is also a designated accessible space on Adelaide Street. There are nine spaces in total created for this project, please see the map for details.

Business Access and Deliveries
Allowance will be made for deliveries until noon each day on Water Street. After 12 p.m. delivery vehicles and curbside pick-up will have designated parking in the coves between Water Street and Harbour Drive. See map for details.

Business owners who have inquiries can reach city staff by emailing specialevents@stjohns.ca.