Despite spending crores on constructing parking lots at the ward level, the Municipal Corporation’s parking facilities are lying vacant as residents continue to park their vehicles on the roadside to avoid paying parking fees. To address the issue and recover the losses, the Municipal Corporation, in collaboration with the traffic police, is preparing to take strict action against roadside parking violators.
Starting next week, the administration will launch an awareness campaign across the city to inform residents about the consequences of parking on the roadside. Residents who park their vehicles on the streets, despite the availability of nearby parking lots, will face challans (fines). The campaign, which will last for 15 days, is aimed at reducing traffic congestion and encouraging the use of designated parking areas.
Municipal Commissioner Bhupendra Atri emphasized the need for change, stating, “Where parking facilities are available, people will have to park their vehicles in those lots instead of on the roads. Parking on the roadside creates traffic problems, and through this campaign, we aim to make residents aware of the issue.”
Currently, over 24 parking lots built by the corporation are underutilized, with vehicles parked freely on roadsides instead. This is causing significant financial losses for the corporation, as it earns no revenue from these empty parking lots.
Challans to be Issued for Roadside Parking Violations
To curb this behavior, the traffic police will issue challans to those who continue to park on the streets, despite the availability of designated parking lots. The administration hopes this enforcement measure, along with the awareness campaign, will encourage more residents to use the corporation’s parking facilities.
Local Residents to Get Priority for Parking Lots
In addition to the enforcement drive, the Municipal Corporation is making efforts to allocate these vacant parking lots to local residents. Residents of the respective wards can apply online or offline through the property branch of the corporation or their ward councillor. The allotment will be done on a first-come, first-served basis, and residents will receive the parking lots for one year.
This move comes after the corporation struggled for years to find contractors willing to operate the parking lots. Despite issuing tenders three times, no operators came forward, leaving the corporation to bear losses amounting to lakhs of rupees annually. By involving local residents, the administration hopes to solve this long-standing issue and ensure better utilization of the parking facilities.
With this multi-pronged approach, the Municipal Corporation aims to not only reduce roadside parking but also make parking more accessible and organized across the city, ultimately easing traffic and minimizing congestion on Shimla’s roads.
