Mumbai The civic body will implement paid on-street parking in four administrative wards in the city, which will allow citizens to park their vehicles in designated areas under close circuit camera television (CCTV) surveillance.
As a pilot, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has earmarked 34 roads in D ward in South Mumbai, including August Kranti Marg to LD Ruparel Marg in Nepeansea Road and Hanging Garden to Kemps Corner in Peddar Road. An additional 50 roads in In K (west) ward — Andheri (west) — have also been identified, and include second cross lane, Millat Nagar, Lokhandwala complex and Oshiwara Park Road.
Other areas where the pilot project will be implemented include Worli (G south ward) — 35 roads such as SS Amritvar Marg, Tulsi Pipe road and Ganpatrao Kadam Marg are earmarked for this — and Powai-Bhandup (S Ward), where 34 roads such as Cliff Avenue Road and High Street Road have been chosen.
The Mumbai Parking Authority (MPA), constituted under the city’s roads and traffic department, will implement the project, referred to as the ward parking management plan, till the term of its contract ends in January 2023. The MPA comprises a team of policy, urban, transport and environment planners from the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) and is headed by advisor Dr Ramnath Jha, a retired Indian Administrative Services (IAS) officer.
“We have identified the requirement for parking in all 24 wards of the city, but we will be piloting it in four. We have gone to every street of the ward just to know the demand and supply of parking. Also, based on land use and road characteristics we have proposed on-street parking. It will be applied to residential areas where residents do not have space inside their buildings or society premises to park,” said Prachi Merchant, who leads the TISS team said, adding that the No Objection Certificate from the traffic department was ready.
Residents, who park their vehicles on the street for free, will be charged as roads belong to the BMC. They will be required to book their slots in advance and pay a monthly or annual fee.
“As of last year, 36 lakh cars are registered in the city. So, we will never be able to match the demand. One needs to bring a policy of putting a curb on private vehicle ownership but that can be done effectively when public transportation like the metro is operational,” she said.
Merchant explained that every ward’s needs are different and one cannot compare two wards.
However, some aspects of the pilot will remain constant. For once, citizens will be able to book their parking space and pay for it digitally. The MPA have also completed a manual on the appropriate signage and markings to identify the streets reserved for this pilot project. The BMC will allot stickers to cars in cases of residential parking.
However, the pricing is still under discussion. The MPA has proposed a draft parking policy with pricing details but it awaits the municipal commissioner’s approval.
“We have come up with a new draft pricing policy and it can be put in place once the MPA is legally formulated. It needs an approval from BMC. Our first aim is to ensure that people get used to systematic regulation, “said Merchant.
Last January, the BMC put together a committee of 15 people, including urban planners and transport policy and environmental experts from TISS to rethink the parking policy in Mumbai. The MPA, which is yet to be recognised as a legal body, is currently under the BMC’s roads and traffic department.
Prithviraj Chauhan, assistant commissioner, K(west) ward said, “We have eight zones in Lokhandwala and as a priority on trial basis we will conduct from zone 1 from Lokhandwala to 2nd cross lane. Zone 1 will be from Lokhandwala Complex to Oshiwara police station. It will have parking for 358 two wheelers and 500 four wheelers. It will be under C category. We will do day markings to instil discipline among residents to park on-street. Once they get used to it, we will take nominal fees. We will start marking after monsoon.”