The Hindu 28.02.2013
Multi-level parking at CGO?
Faced with an acute shortage of parking bays near the CGO complex on Lodhi Road, which has in its perimeter several office complexes, the Union Urban Development Ministry has proposed a multi-level parking with commercial spaces that can be let out.
The proposal, which will be put forth before the Union Cabinet for its approval, envisages letting out space to commercial establishments like restaurants and shops to raise funds for the construction.
“The proposal is still being fleshed out. We are thinking of letting out space to two restaurants with a 100-plus seating capacity and some shops, which will help us raise funds. While Government-owned vehicles will be allowed to park for free, private vehicle will be levied a fee,” said an official, not wishing to be named.
A large plot of land has been earmarked for the project that is expected to cater to the nearby offices and will address the current problem of a large number of vehicles being parked on the roads, leading to traffic congestion.
“Randomly parked vehicles along the roads not only bring traffic to a crawl during peak hours, but are also a security hazard. Once the parking facility comes up, these issues will be addressed,” the official said.
Shortage of parking facilities across the city and the growing complaints about vehicles parked illegally and indiscriminately in residential areas has forced the Ministry to come up with solutions. The Ministry is contemplating introduction of laws to tackle the problem of dearth of parking spaces. Experts in the sector of planning and transport management have urged the Ministry to contemplate Japan’s policy of proof-of-parking, whereby buyers need to show they have ample space for parking their vehicles.
“There needs to be some kind of legislation brought in to check the illegal parking problem. The number of vehicles that are being added to the roads is sharply disproportionate to the land availability for parking. Initiatives like encouraging the use of public transport, increasing the tax on vehicle registration, enhancing parking fees and even the proposal to introduce congestion tax in metros have not been able to check the increasing number of private vehicles. It is imperative to come up with alternatives like multi-level parking,” the official said.
