AIRPORT PARKING BAY CHOKED WITH VEHICLES

AIRPORT PARKING BAY CHOKED WITH VEHICLES
Vijay Times

As the construction activity for Bangalore International airport picks up pace, lethargy hovers over HAL airport. It’s not just the overcrowded parking bay choked with landing airplanes but also the parking place for fourwheelers.

With the number of flights shooting up over the years, the space for flights to taxi-around freely is scarce and it is the same case at the parking lot, which boasts of a capacity of just 500 vehicles. On last count Bangalore had over 23 lakh vehicles! During the peak hours 4 am to 5 am and 10 am to noon, 6 pm to 10 pm and 1.30 am to 3 am about 2000 vehicles enter into the airport premises resulting in utter chaos.

The HAL airport, which is the third busiest in the country after New Delhi and Mumbai with over 260 flight landings and take-off’s witnessed an air traffic traffic growth of 50 per cent in 2006 when compared to 2005.

“ During the peak hours alone around 2000 vehicles enter into the airport. For every departure and arrival an average of 10 cars enter the airport which makes it very difficult to arrange for parking,” says Jayadev, the Contractor overseeing the management in the Airport premises. With hardly any parking space left many motorist are forced to drop or pick visitors near the entrance of the arrival and departure lounge.

In order discourage visitors or passengers from parking their vehicles for a long time the authorities charge Rs 60 for four hours for four wheelers and Rs 225 for buses. However, this has had little impact on the visitors and passengers as a majority still come in their vehicles and park their vehicles for long hours, and some of them overnight.

It is the same with the two wheeler parking space as well, which can accommodate only 500. Parking staff say that around 2,000 two wheelers belong to the Airport officials, security incharge and the airline staff alone leave no space for visitors.

When contacted Airport Officials said that though parking system has been streamlined and made systematic with the introduction of toll gates and computerised parking systems there are no plans of providing muti-parking facilities.

“ As the airport will be shifted to the new Bangalore International Airport in Devanahalli by April 2008, no big investments are planned for the airport,” said Officials. Amen.