Bengaluru: Park smart – Facility for 13.5 K vehicles to start from December 15
Bengaluru: The BBMP has been contemplating introducing pay-and-park system after a gap of 14 years, and smart parking will be introduced on 85 roads from December 15.
A trial run will be conducted on Kasturba Road and it will be implemented in a phased manner on all the 85 roads. There are no parking facilities across the city, especially in the crowded Central Business District (CBD). Haphazard and indiscriminate parking and vehicle thefts are common. Haphazard parking has also led to traffic jams and slow traffic on major arterial and sub-arterial roads.
BBMP Commissioner B.H. Anil Kumar told Deccan Chronicle that the BBMP will earn a revenue of about Rs 31.5 crore annually by introducing the smart parking system, which will be done completely under the Public Private Partnership (PPP) model for 10 years. After the lapse of 10 years, the BBMP will take a decision whether to continue the contract or adopt technical expertise to run the parking facility on its own, he said.
The fee will be charged on hourly basis to discourage parking for long durations. Preference has been given for parking of four-wheelers as they occupy major portion of the road and cause congestion, he explained.
The roads have been classified into Zone A as premium, Zone B as commercial and Zone C as general. The parking system facilitates parking for 3,333 cars and 10,000 two-wheelers round the clock.
Tender was floated way back in 2017, which was bagged by Central Parking Services (CPS), but was not implemented. The BBMP will not spend any money on the facility, while CPS will invest and maintain the parking facility on 85 roads across the city, said BBMP sources.
It will be a high-tech system where the payment will be completely cashless. For each bay, a number will be assigned and electronic sensor fitted. Once operational, it will provide parking facilities to around 13,500 vehicles can be parked for 24 hours.
Vehicle users can get updates on the availability of parking space through a mobile phone app. This will prevent people from going around searching for parking spaces. The facility will be under CCTV surveillance to prevent theft or damage to vehicles.
