Photo: Suzanne Sausville/WBZ NewsRadio
BOSTON (WBZ NewsRadio) — The city of Waltham discussed turning a portion of Moody Street pedestrian only, meaning no street parking would be allowed.
Waltham citizens and shop owners were divided on the idea of whether a car-free Moody Street was a good idea in the first place.
Locals like Troy were very positive about the prospect of a pedestrian only street.
“Driving-wise, there’s ways around it, and it’s kind of nice honestly to have more room to roam about,” Troy said. “I think they can reroute people and have detours and make it work. I think it would be nice.”
Fernando, a cell phone shop employee, felt similarly, saying that it would be a good idea and that it’ll be nice to see people freely roam around the street.
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Not everyone was as positive as Try and Fernando, however. Dottie Bergeron, the Office manager at Waltham Vison Care, said that not allowing street parking will cause a slew of issues for their patients.
“It’s a pain if you can’t park close,” Dottie said. “I mean, if we have patients that have trouble walking, if they can’t park on the street to get here, they tend to say ok I’m going to try somewhere else where they can park.”
Dipak Patel, owner of the Patel Brothers grocery store, was equally as frustrated about this, as no street parking would hurt business across the board.
“Barbers, convenience stores, any of the small stores, everyone is losing their business,” Dipak said.
As of now, what exactly they will do with the street is still being decided, with making the road a one-way or making the street fully pedestrian only being some of the options.
WBZ NewsRadio’s Suzanne Sausville (@WBZSausville) reports.