New park-and-ride location for Thursday's Bomber game

Attention, those who bleed blue and gold: The Bombers have a new park-and-ride stop.

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers released their yearly transportation plan Tuesday and fans in St. Vital should now park their cars in front of the Bay at St. Vital Centre, replacing the Southdale Red River Co-op location.

"This was necessitated due to construction soon to commence in the Southdale Centre parking lot," the Bombers said in a press release. "All other Park & Ride locations have remained the same as last season."

Fans have several options to get to the game, including parking near the stadium, a park-and-ride shuttle, taking transit, cycling or walking.

Parking near the stadium in one of the University of Manitoba's parking lots will run you $10 - $20. You can pay cash on game day, or order a parking pass on Ticketmaster. You can also pay for a seasonal parking pass at the Bomber Store at Investors Group Field. There are 5,000 paid parking spots on campus.

"Please note that the Soccer Lot on Chancellor Matheson Road is no longer a cash parking lot, and is only available to fans who have purchased the green seasonal soccer lot pass," said the Bombers' press release.

There are seven park-and-ride locations, including McPhillips Station, Club Regent, Centre Scolaire Leo-Remillard, Manitoba Hydro on Taylor Avenue, Assiniboia Downs, St. Norbert Hotel and St. Vital Centre at the Bay. The ride costs $5 to get to the stadium. The ride back to the lot is free. Kids under 12 are free. Shuttle buses start running two hours before the game and end about 45 minutes after the game.

Park-and-ride seasonal passes can also be purchased at the Bomber Store at IGF.

The Bombers will also be running their Running Back Shuttle, which goes in a clockwise loop west on Chancellor Matheson Road, north on Pembina Highway, and south on University Crescent back to the stadium. This shuttle is free. Regular transit buses will run, too, but those are not free.

Also free: biking. Those who bike to the stadium will be treated to free bike valet service at IGF's northeast gate. There are 800 valet biking spots.