4 months ago
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Even arsenic the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) plans to grow multi-level parking facilities crossed the city, a crushed sojourn suggests that galore existing parking structures stay underused, while illegal and unauthorised roadside parking continues to choke roads and markets.
Presenting the estimated fund for 2026-27 successful the archetypal week of December 2025, MCD Commissioner Ashwini Kumar said the civic assemblage “plans to unfastened 20 more parking facilities successful the coming year”. All of these, helium said, volition beryllium self-multi-level parking systems alternatively of aboveground lots, arsenic they tin accommodate much vehicles successful constricted abstraction and are considered much “efficient”.
Parked vehicles choke roads
However, spot checks by The Hindu at respective existing multi-level parking sites – some recently inaugurated and those operational for years – recovered that galore facilities with capacities of implicit 500 cars were lying mostly empty. In contrast, roads astir markets and commercialized hubs were crowded with vehicles parked successful no-parking zones.
Parking operators and car users cited respective reasons for avoiding automated parking, including the clip required for parking and retrieval, the region to destinations, and the availability of cheaper oregon escaped roadside parking.
During fund discussions, the chairperson of the MCD’s Works Committee, Preeti, besides flagged the issue, suggesting that each vacant onshore nether the civic body’s jurisdiction should beryllium converted into parking lots. She said this conversion would assistance region encroachments, summation revenue, and span the widening spread between parking demand and the rising fig of vehicles successful Delhi.
In September 2025, Chief Minister Rekha Gupta inaugurated 2 long-delayed puzzle parking projects – a multi-level installation successful Punjabi Bagh with a capableness of 225 vehicles, built astatine a outgo of ₹31 crore, and an eight-level automated parking facility successful Greater Kailash-I that tin clasp 399 cars. In addition, operation has begun connected a self-automated parking facility for 188 cars at Bharat Darshan Park astatine a outgo of ₹30 crore. Officials said vehicles tin beryllium retrieved successful astir 150 seconds utilizing the automated system.
Yet, the effect connected the crushed has been mixed. At the recently opened GK-I parking, lone a fistful of cars were parked, portion the lanes of M Block marketplace remained lined with vehicles parked close extracurricular shops. Surface parking is allowed adjacent to storefronts, affecting pedestrian movement, portion auto-rickshaws and different para-transit vehicles are restricted from entering the market.
‘Doorstep parking preferred’
“People prefer parking right astatine the doorstep,” said Arpit Singh, a regular visitant to the market. “The automated parking is there, but it feels inconvenient erstwhile free parking is easy disposable outside.”
Similarly, astatine the Sarojini Nagar multi-level parking facility built by the New Delhi Municipal Council successful 2011 astatine a outgo of ₹80 crore, traders said agelong waiting times discourage users. The installation has a capableness for 824 vehicles, but it is seldom full.
‘Even if it’s illegal...’
A car owner, Ankit Verma, said both parking and retrieval could instrumentality up to 25 minutes during engaged hours. “It’s faster to parkland connected the road, adjacent if it’s illegal. The attack roadworthy to the parking doesn’t person capable abstraction to grip postulation if everyone uses it,” helium said.
In contrast, parking facilities adjacent bureau areas reported amended usage. Operators astatine the automated parking facility other the Green Park determination bureau successful Hauz Khas said the facility, with a capableness of implicit 130 cars, is usually full. “Most users are monthly walk holders who enactment nearby,” said a parking attendant, adding that marketplace visitors inactive similar roadside parking.
One of the city’s oldest facilities, the underground parking at Asaf Ali Road adjacent Lok Nayak Hospital, with abstraction for 1,800 vehicles, was besides recovered to beryllium mostly unoccupied.
Uptick successful revenue
MCD information amusement that gross from aboveground and multi-level parking rose from ₹49.14 crore betwixt April and September 2024 to ₹58.09 crore successful the aforesaid play of 2025. Currently, the civic assemblage operates 430 parking lots crossed Delhi, including 14 multi-level facilities. Parking rates are ₹20 per hr for cars and ₹10 per hr for two-wheelers, capped astatine ₹100 and ₹50 per time respectively.
MCD officials besides said that unless amerciable surface parking is strictly controlled and marketplace entree is redesigned, automated parking alone whitethorn not lick Delhi’s parking crisis.
