Grand Parkway commuters will have additional parking space on Monday, Oct. 26. The Grand Parkway park and ride location will add nearly 450 new parking spaces, which doubles the location’s existing 423 spaces.

The new spaces are interim parking while a new 1,650-space parking garage is constructed at the corner of the I-10 and Grand Parkway frontage roads, said Clint Harbert, METRO senior director of system planning.

The parking structure is expected to break ground in early 2016 and should be complete by fall 2016, he said.

“Ridership growth [at the Grand Parkway location] has been growing for some time,” Harbert said.

About 400 cars parked at the location when it launched in 2008, and that number has doubled to roughly 800 per day, Harbert said.

“We were over-parked. New Quest has been very helpful [in working with METRO to provide more space],” he said.

Commercial real estate lender New Quest Properties owns the property and will put up the estimated $21 million cost of construction for the parking structure. A long-term lease will reimburse the company, METRO Asset Management Specialist Andrew Buchmann said.

When the structure is complete, parking demand on opening day is expected to be 1,000-1,300 cars per day, Harbert said.

“This is a very successful park and ride [location],” Harbert said. “We’re continuing to find ways to help people get downtown.”