DNA Micro Edit: BMC’s new pay-and-park policy has few takers

Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is planning to implement its ambitious parking policy in the city and has begun the implementation in some areas of A-ward. To begin with, the civic body aims at decongesting roads and regulating the parking system in the clogged roads and lanes of Colaba and Churchgate areas. However, the pilot project is facing opposition from many, including the residents of the area.

BMC plans to demarcate parking spaces on roads outside buildings and expects the residents to park their vehicles in the allotted parking space. However, it fails to give assurance that the designated parking spot is exculisvely reserved for a resident. BMC also expects the security guard of such residential societies to take responsibility for the given parking space. But again, the question arises of people actually paying heed to security guards who are most likely to end up in a tussle with locals. The civic body aims at resolving the issue of parking problems in the city by executing the plan well. It also plans to take help from traffic police and Mumbai police to put the system in place and to address citizen complaints. To take it a step further, the BMC should take over the public parking lots in the city which developers have constructed in lieu of additional floor space index (FSI). This will relieve the stress of insufficient parking space in the city.