Parallel parking on Brigade Road affects sales

Parallel parking on Brigade Road affects sales
New Indian Express

BANGALORE: For shopkeepers on Brigade Road, business is not going too well. With the parallel parking system introduced here from April 22, business has come down considerably, say disappointed shop owners.

Secretary of Brigade Shops and Establishment Association (BSEA), Sohail Yusuff says, ‘‘The automated parking system was working very well and nearly 85 vehicles could be parked on this road alone. Parallel parking, which often turns out to be double parking, has ruined our efforts to cut the traffic problems.’’

Ravi Kumar, a shopper says, ‘‘Thinking of shopping in Brigade Road freaks me out. Previously, only weekends were best avoided but now even weekdays are equally crowded. Parking is a big problem. Hence, I prefer to shop in Forum and other malls, where everything is available under one roof’’.

With parallel parking in place, only around 30 vehicles are being parked on Brigade Road now. This, the association says is not a good sign as the automated system is being under utilised.

The automated parking system, the first of its kind in India, was the initiative of the association. But now these machines bought by the association are being under utilised yielding no revenue.

When the automated parking was introduced, the BSEA and the Bangalore City Corporation (BCC) had signed a Memorandum of Understanding, stating that the revenue collected will be shared between the BCC and the BSEA. But shop owners alleged that there was no revenue coming to make up for the cost of the machines.

But the police backed the new system citing less traffic jams on the road. Traffic DCP (East) M.A. Saleem, says, ‘‘Now the vehicle flow is smooth. Angular parking has been removed on all roads. The system is working well.’’

As for business going down, he said, ‘‘Roads are meant for driving and not for parking. Moreover, we are booking people who are guilty of double parking. Soon, car markings will be done to avoid complaints such as vehicle’s hitting each other’’, he said.