The Reading Police Department Traffic Division is releasing traffic modifications to accommodate various events occurring in the city on Tuesday, August 2nd, which are expected to draw a large number of attendees.
On Tuesday, RPD will host its annual National Night Out celebration, taking over the 400 & 500 blocks of Penn Street, while a few blocks away, the Santander Arena will host the Rockzilla Tour featuring Papa Roach.
Due to the popularity of these events, the Traffic Division has put together the following plan to ease traffic congestion.
National Night Out will observe the following accommodations, starting at noon:
- The 400 and 500 blocks of Penn St will be closed to all traffic, with barricades at 4th St and 6th St.
- 5th St will also be closed to all traffic between Court St and Cherry St, with barricades at each intersection.
- Free parking, courtesy of the Reading Parking Authority, will be available at the 6th & Cherry flat lot and the 4th & Cherry Garage.
The Rockzilla Tour featuring Papa Roach at the Santander Area (doors open at 5:00 PM, and the show starts at 6:00 PM) will observe the following accommodations, starting at 3:30 PM:
- Entering the city from the Penn Street bridge, a mobile message sign near 2nd & Penn will advise all concert attendees to turn left onto a designated lane on North 2nd St. and then turn right onto Court St.
- Court St. motorists will travel east with parking options in one of the following three garages:
- Reed & Court Garage for a fee of $15.00
- DoubleTree Garage for a fee of $25.00 (VIP Parking)
- South Penn Garage for a fee of $15.00
- The 200 block of Penn St. will be restricted to eastbound traffic only.
- The 700 block of Penn St. will be closed to vehicle traffic with barricades at 7th St. and 8th St.
- The 600 block of Penn St will have limited vehicle access and should only be used for the following purposes:
- Guests staying at The DoubleTree Hilton Hotel.
- Concert attendee drop-off who requires special access due to a disability.
- Anyone wanting to park in the VIP State Lot at 644 Penn St. with a parking fee of $25.00.
Regular traffic flow is expected to be restored by 10 PM. In addition, Reading Police officers will be assigned to affected intersections and other strategic areas to assist drivers and pedestrians. Detour signage, ‘No Parking’ signs, and additional notices will be posted throughout the routes to advise drivers of changes.
An interactive map and extended information can be found at www.readingpa.gov/visitors-map
Detailed and updated information regarding parking should be verified at https://readingparking.com/event-parking/
