Parking

PARKING

•  Parking is an essential component of the transportation system.
• More Parking supply is a magnet for more vehicles. 
• Abundant parking supply gives rise to more parking demand and the vicious demand-supply cycle goes on.  
• A typical vehicle usually needs three different parking spaces
• one at the owner’s residence, 
• second at owner’s office/business place and 
• third at recreational/entertainment facilities. 

• Parking facilities are a major cost to society. 
• As the numbers of vehicles in the city explode, parking becomes a public nuisance, swallowing all available spaces meant for other road users as well as creating a demand for all available open spaces to be turned into parking lots. 
• One car parking occupies space equivalent to one affordable housing unit in India.
• Traffic management and parking policy are closely interlinked. 
• Rather than having a reactive parking policy, one that constantly changes with the ever-increasing numbers of vehicles, the policy itself needs to ensure a reduction in the need for parking and supports more strategic planning objectives. 
• It is therefore necessary to strike a balance between the need to provide parking space and the need to locate it in such a manner as to encourage the use of sustainable modes of transport. 
• Parking spaces (on-street and off-street) have to be selected so as to have least impact on the flow of traffic. 
• The parking policy should encourage  use of alternative modes of transport and reduce motor vehicle use (thereby reducing traffic congestion, accidents and pollution). 
• It should have the ability to accommodate new traffic management concepts and respond to traffic problems. 
• It should promote appropriate use of land with promotion of environment friendly measures. 
• It should discourage the use of private mode of transport while encouraging efficient use of available parking spaces, aid in evolving a better transportation system, build a strategy to reduce congestion, pollution, and help the public transport system to grow.
• The policy should help the city in becoming more ‘people friendly’ than ‘vehicle friendly’.
•  The creation of parking infrastructure requires not only funds and technology but also cooperation of vehicle owners. 
• Concepts like
•  car free day,
•  congestion taxes,
•  vehicle free zones etc. need to be promoted by such interest groups. 

• Public education, awareness campaigns and public participation programmes  play an important role establishing a new policy.
• There can be many types of parking problems, including
• inadequate or excessive supply, 
• too low or high prices inadequate user information, and
• inefficient management. 

• Too much of parking supply is harmful. 
• Parking requirements should reflect each particular situation, and should be applied flexibly. 
• As much as possible, users should pay directly for parking facilities. 
• Parking should be regulated to favour higher priority uses and encourage efficiency. 
• Innovative concepts for traffic demand management should be applauded and adopted. 
• Parking management programs should be widely applied to prevent parking problems. 
• Parking management is a tool of travel demand management. 
• It complements sustainable transport initiatives and hence should be implemented in a parallel manner. 
• Development of ‘parking-only’ structures is more appropriate while commercial development in parking structures should not be permitted. 
• Multi-storey parking should be complemented by limited, time-slotted on-street parking and higher rates. 
• Without imposing these measures, multi-storey parking will fail to reduce congestion on the streets and will be a futile exercise.