26 December,2010 08:07 AM IST | | Vedika Chaubey
If all goes well, you will soon be able to park your vehicle near the railway station. Central Railway has floated a tender for the pay and park of passenger vehicles at a few railway stations. According to railway officials, there are railways lands near the stations that are not being used and can be utilised for the benefit of passengers.
The system is supposed to be operational by the beginning of next year. It will do away with the risk of parking outside the station by allowing vehicles to be parked inside the railway premises.
Ashok Kumar Singh, PRO, Central Railway, said, "We have already floated the tenders and contractors will be chosen depending upon their bid." This will be a profitable thing for the railways as they will be earning huge amounts of money from the contractors on an annual basis.
The five stations which have been shortlisted are Lokmanya Tilak Terminus (LTT), Mankhurd, Bhiwandi Road, Kalyan and Parel.
The land available near each station is 810, 430,410,441 and 840 sq metres respectively. In this system, passengers will be charged a minimal amount by the contractor. The railways will earn in lakhs depending on the area.
For instance, railway will charge Rs 16.5 lakh per annum for the LTT pay and park space ufffd an area of 810 sq metresu00a0-- from the contractor.
Anil Singh, a Kandivli resident, who often visits the LTT station to pick up his relatives, feels that this is a wonderful idea.
"Every time I end up parking my vehicle far away from the station and we have to walk very far carrying heavy luggage. Thanks to this pay and park system, passengers like me will be benefited the most," he said. Besides Singh, there are others too who are happy with the move.
Pappu Yadav from Nallasopara is one such commuter who feels the pay and park space will solve a lot of problems of daily commuters like him.
"I have two cars at home, I always go by train and taxi when I have to receive relatives from the station. There is no place at the station to park and this becomes a problem especially at night," said Yadav.
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