Karen Brewer

…Someday my pass will come….Darien Commuter Parking for Home and Condo owners

 

There are two Metro North train stations in Darien,one in the Noroton Heights Station and the other  in downtown Darien. They are only a couple of miles apart and most morning and afternoon trains stop at both.

  If you live in Noroton Heights and wish to park at that station,you must have a permit or purchase a ‘”voucher”.The waiting list for a permit is approximately TWO YEARS long. The cost for an annual parking pass is $315 and you can get on the waiting list by calling Darien Public Works at (203)655-7330. The permit allows you to park only at one of the two stations since the number of spots is limited.

If you are a “waiting for permit”  resident and still wish to park at the Noroton station you can purchase daily or weekly vouchers. They  can be purchased for $3/day or a  as a book of 10. You simply display the voucher in your car window and you’re good to go.The vouchers can be purchased at various Darien retail outlets, including Learys Liquor right across the street from the Noroton station or Darien Produce located down the street from the Darien station.

You may leave your car at the either station overnight (in fact you may do so for up to five days) if you have a yearly permit or a voucher for each day.

If you happen to live in Tokeneke or other points south of I95, you may prefer the Darien Station.In addition to permit and voucher parking , there is a cash option available on a first come-first served basis. Arrive EARLY since out of town residents  use this option too.

 From time to time, vehicles are stolen from the Noroton lot. The on/off proximity to I95 can make it an attractive and easy lot from which to steal cars. Several years ago the town decided to close the gate leading to the Thruway. This has reduced the number of car thefts but it still happens occasionally.

Traffic to and from the stations in the mornings is not a problem except when school is in session. If you go to either station between 7-9 AM you can easily get stuck behind a school bus . Also one of the main roads (Hollow Tree Ridge) currently has  construction and a detour near the Noroton station.Also,if you are driving south on the Hollow Tree Ridge Rd.  There is often a traffic jam of moms dropping off their kids at the Middlesex Middle School. The line of cars slows down the traffic trying to get to the station.There are ways around it but can be infuriating if you are trying to catch a train.

There are other options including municipal parking lots which are free and just short walks to either station. Lots of people try to park illegally around the two stations, but this is risky.  Although you may get away with it from time to time, you will eventually wind up ticketed.

The town has wisely provided bike racks at both stations.

This entry was posted on Thursday, July 30th, 2009 at 4:17 pm and is filed under Community Info. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

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