City’s parking woes still unaddressed

Residents wonder when the proposed parking lots will become a reality.

Drains are being cleaned, encroachments cleared and flex boards being removed. But when will parking lots that were converted for other purposes be retrieved and the promised ones be made a reality remain nagging questions for the city’s public.

With schools set to reopen and a related shopping frenzy on, the city’s roads are bustling.

The lack of adequate parking space is being felt like never before. Even then, the Corporation remains silent on the parking lots it had proposed more than a year ago.

The district administration had launched a drive to take action against commercial establishments, especially those on MG Road, that had converted parking lots and basements meant for parking into shopping spaces or office rooms. What happened of the drive is yet to be known.

In the meanwhile, even as the public jostle with each other for every inch of parking space, the City police are continuing with their drive against what it calls illegal parking. The drive on Saturday and Sunday saw fines being slapped on a whopping 2,477 vehicles.

The drive saw police officers going on pasting the pink stickers on cars parked in not just ‘No Parking’ areas but also in areas where there were no ‘No Parking’ boards. The latter was because the vehicles were disrupting free flow of traffic, the police said. While there is no doubt that those parking on pedestrian pathways were doing wrong, where would people park their vehicles remains a mute question.

Thirumala Junction and the road leading to Thrikkannapuram have become a travellers’ nightmare, as it is full of potholes and uneven stretches. In certain places, the tarred portion has been completely washed away.

Travelling on the stretch is quite an ordeal, and often vehicles break down, leading to traffic snarls.

The condition of the road, according to local residents, had worsened after the Kerala Water Authority took up work to replace old drinking water pipes in the area.

The recent rain had caused further damage and the road presents a picture of slush and eroded gravel.

(Reporting by Dennis Marcus Mathew and Rajesh B. Nair)