Bengaluru is one of those rare cities that makes people, who are new to the place, call themselves proud Bengalureans. Added to this, the city’s cosmopolitan culture, weather and availability of skilled work force have attracted many industries leading to phenomenal growth and economic boom.
However, the economic development of the city has its negative impact in the form of traffic congestion, with routine traffic jams becoming a norm. The rapid urban population growth with relatively small investments in the transport sector has resulted in an increasing gap between the transport demand and supply, leading to an enormous growth of personal vehicles in the city. ( See chart )
One of the major problems is the non-availability of adequate parking infrastructure. Owing to this, a large number of vehicles are found parked on the sides of roads leading to further traffic congestion and jams.
Parking on roads leads to following problems
Congestion: Parking takes away considerable space leading to reduction in road capacity. It results in reducing and increasing journey time leading to traffic congestion.
Accidents: Parking also results in accidents due to careless manoeuvring and poor visibility of parked vehicles on highways. A majority of the accidents on highways are due to vehicles crashing on parked vehicles.
Obstruction to emergency vehicles: Parked vehicles may obstruct the movement of emergency vehicles, and sometimes they block access to hydrants and buildings. They cause hardship to those living in residential neighbourhoods that are also commercial hubs.
There is a need to evolve sustainable parking strategies in the form of comprehensive parking policy.
But it cannot be done overnight, and involves short, mid, and long-term strategies.
Short-term strategies
For one, street parking in critical areas and congested roads should be banned. There should also be strict enforcement of no-parking zones, and a total ban on parking of commercial vehicles such as taxis, maxi cabs, trucks etc., in residential areas.
The introduction of a pay-and-park system on all roads of the city will also help as will differential parking pricing depending upon traffic congestion. Commercial areas should have higher parking fees and heavy overstay penalties.
For instance, areas like Brigade Road and Commercial Street should have premium parking rates.
Apps can also be used to reach out to citizens to notify them about availability of parking spaces in different areas. The introduction of electronic metering at parking lots will help achieve transparency and eliminate arbitrary charging of parking fees. Preference should be given in the allocation of parking space to public transport vehicles and non-motorised modes of transport.
Medium-term strategies
Such measures could include the establishment of differential parking norms and guidelines based on public transport services, discouraging higher floor area ratio/ground coverage in congested areas, encouraging private parking facilities and terminals, and making provisions for parking facilities in critically deficient areas with the introduction of park and ride systems.
New developments and regulation of new layouts should be approved through traffic impact assessment. An organised and well-planned public transport system also has a vital role. Providing last-mile connectivity between train/metro services and BMTC will reduce dependency on private vehicles. Metro stations and bus terminals should develop park and ride facilities.
Long-term strategies
Some of the long-term strategies to address the problem involve construction of multi-level car parking facilities and the implementation of a ‘Parking Action Plan for Bengaluru City’ developed by DULT. The levying of higher road tax for vehicle purchasers who do not have own parking space can be looked into, as also incentives like capital subsidy and waiver of municipal taxes for private landowners to develop stand alone parking facility. Provisions of free additional Floor Area Ratio (FAR) in the building by-laws to create more parking spaces in residential areas is another suggestion.
The implementation of above strategies requires coordinated efforts from different stakeholders such as the BBMP, BDA, traffic police, DULT, BMRCL, Railways and BMTC. Short-term strategies does not require any financial implications and can be taken up immediately, while long-term strategies have financial implications and require institutional and legal support. The systematic implementation of above strategies will result in better utilisation of road space leading to traffic decongestion and reduced pollution levels.
(Series concludes. M.A. Saleem is a former Additional Commissioner of Police-Traffic, Bengaluru)
