Transport experts give a thumbs up to Centre’s suggestion, say city is a fit case.
If the Centre’s plan materialises, you will have to pay for driving to crowded areas in the city.
Congestion pricing will make traffic management easier, said the Centre, which plans to push for it during the annual road safety programme from January 1 to 7, 2012.
Senior transport department officials said the latest circular that they received from the Union ministry of road transport for the road safety week has included introduction of measures for low-occupancy vehicles entering central business districts and introduce the concept of congestion pricing and road tax.
City transport experts said Mumbai could be a perfect case and the city transport planning report had suggested such a concept in 1994. “Congestion pricing is a levy Mumbaikars must pay towards reducing congestion in the Central Business District of south Mumbai,” the comprehensive transport plan report of WS Atkins had recommended in 1994 for Mumbai Metropolitan Region.
But residents did not take the proposition seriously because this was regarded as far-fetched western approach for tackling congestion, said Arun P Mokashi, transport specialist.
“However, in the next 15 years, jamming of the streets grew denser and there was no hope that it could possibly ease in the near future. Re-examination of option for congestion pricing has now become most pressing,” added Mokashi, who was instrumental in reviving the transport system in the war-ravaged Afghanistan.
The best way to levy congestion tax is to increase parking fees in congested and crowded areas. The hiked parking fees will automatically deter car owners. “This could be a non-controversial concept of introducing congestion tax,” said Ashok Datar of the Mumbai Environment Social Network.
Mokashi recently wrote on the subject for the Maharashtra Economic Development Council. “Clearly the days for postponement of congestion pricing are over as there is no effective alternative for arresting south Mumbai’s deteriorating mobility,” he said.
According to transport expert Sudhir Badami, congestion pricing would be the smartest way to generate funds for expensive projects such as Metro rail. “As there is no alternative, the 2.8% city’s population that uses cars and 8.5% motorcycle riders will have to shell out money as they have no public transport option,” said Badami.
“If the government simultaneously introduces Bus Rapid Transit System, then car users will have an alternative mode and traffic woes will ease to some extent. Since the government is not talking of this aspect, I see malafide intentions of government,” he added.
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