Now, multi-storied parking with public utility spaces in Ahmedabad

There finally is hope for the much-delayed multi-storied parking facility that Ahmedabad urgently needs.

After the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) failed to get a good response for constructing four multi-storied parking spaces, it has now decided to take up the project on a Build, Operate and Transfer (BOT) basis.

With this, contractors would also get some space to sell off, as the new parking spaces will have provision for public spaces like exhibition halls, art galleries etc. The AMC has floated tenders for construction of such a parking space-cum public area in four places — behind Navrangpura bus stand, Navrangpura market, near Vastrapur Lake and near Macchipir in Kankaria.

Municipal commissioner IP Gautam said that they have decided to take up the four projects on a BOT basis, after the success of the same model followed in the Raipur multi-storied parking facility.

"The market is opening up now after the economic downturn, and so, to cash in on the opportunity, we have floated the tender. In the new tender, there is a provision for public space development that can fetch hefty sums for the contractor," he said.

Similar projects are in operation in other mega cities like Bangalore, Mumbai and Kolkata. Gautam said that earlier tenders for multi-storied parking did not invoke any response.

As a result, the civic body decided to construct its own multi-storied parking.

The commissioner added that it was after much discussion with AMC officials that they finally decided to go ahead
with the BOT offer. The AMC has invited bids from private agencies that have worked on similar projects in India or any other country.