With this Chennai has become the third city in the country after Bangalore and Hyderabad to introduce parking meters.

In an attempt to regulate vehicle parking in the city’s designated parking lots, Chennai Corporation has started installing parking meters for four-wheelers on a trial basis at three congested commercial locations.

According to corporation sources, four solar-powered parking meters have been installed in the North Mada Street near Kapaleeswarar Temple in Mylapore, which is one of the heavily used parking lots in the city.

Another 13 such meters will be installed at parking lots in Pondy Bazaar and on CSIR Road in Taramani where many IT parks are located and four-wheelers are parking roundthe- clock. Mayor M Subramanian will inaugurate these facilities in the coming days.

A private firm will operate these parking meters and collect Rs 5 per hour.

An attendant will conveniently tender change to the vehicle owners since the automated machines will accept only Rs 5 coins.

The corporation had already identified 12 commercial locations in the city to install such parking meters in due course of time.

The success of these meters and feedback on the ones that are currently being installed will help the corporation evolve a comprehensive policy to streamline its parking lots in the city’s commercial zones.

To operate these meters, a car driver has to drop a Rs 5 coin into the meter and obtain a slip on which the entry time will be printed.

The permit has to be displayed prominently on the car’s dashboard so that the parking attendant can view it.