City’s wait for FASTag-based smart parking lots gets longer

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, August 24

Already delayed for a year and a half, the local Municipal Corporation’s plan to have FASTag-based smart parking lots has been pushed further by a month as it has extended the date for filing of bids for the project to September 23.

Parking charges

• According to the plan, the first 20 minutes will be free for pick and drop at the 84 parking lots (excluding facilities outside malls) in the city. No increase has been made in the existing parking charges for vehicles.
• For the first slab of four hours, Rs 7 and Rs 14 will be charged for two-wheelers and four-wheelers, respectively.
• Between four and eight hours, an additional Rs 10 and Rs 20 will be charged for two-wheelers and four-wheelers, respectively. Over eight hours, Rs 5 and Rs 10 more will be levied in the cases of two-wheelers and four-wheelers, respectively.

The last date to file the bids was August 23. However, the date for filing of the bids has been extended. After receiving the bids, the MC would carry out the process of financial and technical evaluation. The selected agency would then take some weeks to start the work.

In January last year, the term of the two parking agencies had ended and since then, the civic body has failed to finalise the new plan thereby hitting operation of the parking lots. Mismanagement and overcrowded parking lots are order of the day with commuters complaining of inconvenience and getting no or little assistance inside the facilities.

MC Joint Commissioner Gurinder Singh Sodhi claimed that they got too many queries from agencies regarding the parking tender due to which they decided to extend the last date for filing of bids by a month.

Sources said it could also be the reason that there was no regular MC Commissioner at present and the Deputy Commissioner was given the charge only two days back.

Under the new digital system, people have to pay Rs 5 extra in case of cash payment at 89 paid parking lots in the city. Payment can be made through QR code scanner or debit/credit card. Some of the parking lots will be available only to vehicles having FASTag.