To decongest streets, govt plans steeper parking charges

Dhaval Kulkarni

Posted online: Monday, February 11, 2008 at 2306 hrs IST

Mumbai, February 10
With cheaper car variants set to swamp the automobile market, the government is bracing to contain the spin-off, congestion of roads, with a steep hike in parking fees in cities like Mumbai.

If the plan mooted by the Urban Development department comes through, vehicle owners in cities like Mumbai, Pune, Nagpur and Nashik will end up paying parking charges in accordance with the price of land in the respective city.

Senior officials of the department said letters to the effect would be sent to the municipal corporations of the cities soon.

“The decision to charge vehicle owners the full social cost for parking on the busy streets at city centres will ensure that lesser people buy vehicles and even fewer take them to work, leading to a reduction in pollution and congestion,” says a senior official from the department.

An estimated 1,200 vehicles are registered daily in Mumbai and 500 in Pune. The numbers are expected to rise further with low-cost car models entering the market. The increasing number of vehicles threatens to wipe out the addition to road infrastructure made over the years, according to officials.

Elaborating on the rationale further, they pointed out that while land in metros like Mumbai, Pune, Nashik and Nagpur cost upwards of a few thousands per metre, car owners got to park their vehicles in busy commercial districts for free. Though parking charges were applicable in some cities, they were a pittance compared to actual costs of the land.

In its directive, the department is likely to suggest Rs 10 per hour towards parking charges.

Civil engineer and transport analyst Sudhir Badami, however, does not believe such measures will help. In Mumbai, he says, decongestion of streets is difficult unless there is addition to public transport capacity.

While 3.50 lakh people use the city’s suburban train network every hour, the complete implementation of the Mumbai Urban Transport Project (MUTP) will result in a capacity addition of 1.80 lakh. But even with the capacity of the upcoming Metro rails, the commuting demand will outstrip the supply by 28 per cent.

“It is necessary for the government to implement the Bus Rapid Transit System (BRTS),” says Badami, adding this, along with the implementation of the skybus system, will help create significant capacity and ease the crowds in the local trains.

SR Tambe, retired PWD Secretary and former chairperson of the State Accident Prevention Committee, says though the move to introduce rational parking charges is welcome, it will not result in a drastic reduction in the number of vehicles on the roads, with commuters getting gradually used to the additional charges. However, the money can be used to fund better road infrastructure.

Tambe points out that efficient and integrated public transport systems on the lines of global cities like London and New York will result in people making a gradual shift from the use of personal vehicles to public transport.

dhaval.kulkarni@expressindia.com