Parking pressure

For these vehicles,there are around 60 parking lots and 26 paid parking lots. The Municipal Corporation generates Rs 4.20 crore every year by auctioning the paid parking lots.

Chaos reigns supreme
The MC has certain norms for the paid parking lots,but the contractors seem to be least bothered. A visit to these parking lots reveals various discrepancies.
* Cars should have organised slots,but they are parked in a haphazard manner. And as the attendants try to fit as many vehicles as possible,the situation gets chaotic.
* Attendants need to be present every 50 metres to guide vehicles,but they are hardly present,leaving people to fend for themselves.
* CCTV cameras have not been installed at the entry and exit points of all parking lots.
* After the fire in Sector-22 market in April,slots were marked for fire tenders with yellow lines,but cars are parked on these.

No takers for underground parking
Despite the chaos,underground parking lots in Sector 8 and 17 do not have many takers. These parking lots remain vacant most of the time.
Lack of security,no attendants and being ill-kept are among the reasons for there parking lots lying unused.
Earlier,a proposal had been mooted that market associations take charge of these parking lots,but nothing has materialised.
An MC official said the newly created parking lots in Sector 17 also are not fully occupied despite the facility being free of cost.

Other areas feel the pressure
As the number of cars continues to rise,even residential areas are feeling the pressure,where the number of cars exceeds the space available for parking.
It is common to see cars parked along the roads outside the houses,making the roads narrower. The chaos peaks during early morning and late night hours.
The MC had put paver blocks around parks in the city to increase space,but even they have been inadequate.
The issue has been raised in the MC House,where it was suggested that there should be a restriction on buying cars in case of lack of parking space in residential areas.
In some markets,vehicles are parked along the roads,eating into the commuters’ space. Similar rows of cars can be seen near educational institutions like the SD College and DAV College,and hospitals like GMSH,Sector 16,and PGI.

Proposals and plans
There are a number of plans to improve the situation,but they are likely to remain only plans in the near future.
However,after lingering on for two years,work has been started on the multi-level parking lot in Sector 17. Another multi-level parking lot has been proposed for the Industrial Area.
A study conducted by RITES in Sector 17 revealed that parking space for 6,600 cars is available in the sector when the requirement is of 10,000 cars.

To increase space,three new multi-level parking lots have been proposed in the city. But a decision on whether these would be mechanised or not hasn’t been taken yet.

UT Chief Architect Sumit Kaur said,“Once the Municipal Corporation takes a decision on whether the multi-level parking lots are to be mechanised or not,we would start making the plans. A parking lot is also proposed near Centra Mall to tide over the chaos there. Community parking lots would also be readied for which the first site has been identified in Sector 19 and another in Sector 22.”

“We have also asked the Municipal Corporation to identify sites in residential areas where provision for parking can be made,” Kaur added.

When asked,Mayor Kamlesh said she would fulfill her commitment of providing better parking facilities. “Improving the parking facilities in the city is the need of the hour. The vehicles are increasing at a fast pace and the infrastructure needs to cope with this growth. Multi-level parking lots are in the pipeline and community parking lots would also be built,” Kamlesh said.

Citizens speak
People,who are at the receiving end of the chaotic situation,have several ideas to improve the situation.
* The Chandigarh Citizens’ Council said car pooling should be promoted and government institutions should take the lead in introducing buses for staff members. Chairman of the Council M P S Chawla said car pooling and staff buses would reduce the chaos on the roads and in parking lots.
* Shopowners should be allowed to park their vehicles in the parking lots for a nominal amount. Also,parking fee should be increased to Rs 5 for every two hours for four wheelers.
* An MC official said to ensure utilisation of underground parking lots,the civic body should deploy its own attendants there. The facility should be free or a lesser amount than paid parking lots should be charged.
* Another suggestion is that contract of underground parking lots should be given under a package with surface parking lots.