Mumbai: Illegal parking by service centres on footpaths ignored by BMC

When pushed into a corner over the severe criticism it received following the implementation of steep fines in its new parking policy the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation BMC issued a statement saying Roads serve a public service of providing mobility which is a mandatory duty of the BMC With the aim of decongesting Mumbais roads the civic body on July 7 implemented a fine on vehicles found parked on roads within a 500metre radius of authorised MCGM parking spotsBorivli West Violators Private busesThe fines will go up to Rs 15000 including towing charges for parking within a 500metre radius of 26 authorised public parking lots and 20 designated BEST depots in Mumbai It will range from Rs 5000 for twowheelers to Rs 15000 for heavy vehicles If you add the penalty for late payment the total could go as high as Rs 23250 Soon after introducing the rule on July 8 the civic body fined 56 vehicle owners and collected a total of Rs 180 lakh in finesMulund Violators Roadside garage ownersYet most Mumbaikars who now park their vehicles in BMC lots are wondering despite the drive why isnt there space on footpaths or roads to walk They find that pedestriancentric spaces have been taken over by roadside garages Worse they park their inservice vehicles on the roads seemingly without paying any penalty And they are not the only ones A trip around Mumbai by midday reporters revealed how the BMC is victimising private vehicle owners aloneSchool Buses PicsNimesh DaveLocation Opposite Majas bus depotJogeshwari East JVLRClosest parking lot Less than 300 metres away next to Oberoi International SchoolOn the footpath and at some spots on the eastbound carriageway of the JVLR private vehicles are found parked without care The stretch near Shyam Lake and Oberoi International School is always congested with traffic since it is dotted with garages The garage owners have encroached the footpath along the eastbound stretch and many park their vehicles along the road narrowing a threelane road down to two causing slowmoving traffic during morning and evening rush hours When midday visited the spot we realised that BMC had been taking no actionAlso ReadMumbai BMC proposes Rs 1200 crore bailout for BESTPrivate carsResident speakShreepad Gawde of Poonam Nagar Jogeshwari East said The rules seems to be only for common citizens while the garage owners continue to illegally park on footpathsOfficial speakWard officer Prashant Sapkale remained unavailable despite repeated attempts to contact him on call and text messageRickshaws03No of lanes on the road before illegal parking shrunk it down to twoLocation Devidas Lane Borivli Closest parking lot Parking lot at Club Aquaria RNorth WardWhile the designated parking lot at Club Aquaria lies empty less than 500 metres from it there are two twowheeler garages that line the road This road four lanes wide and one that doesnt see heavy flow of traffic was considered a parking spot for tourist buses heavy vehicles like school buses private cars and autorickshaws This has narrowed it to two lanes Since the introduction of the new parking regulations the road is breathing slightly but parking continues to remain a nuisanceThe designated pay and park lot at Club Aquaria lies empty circled but the road continues to be home to tourist buses and autorickshaws PicsSameer Markande The road continues to be home to parked tourist buses and autorickshaws The stretch right opposite the designated parking space is where tourist buses were lined up At the end of road is St Lawrence School and its buses were parked by the cornerA little ahead toward SV Road is the office of Adani Electricity and a local MTNL branch Here you see a line of autorickshaws parked through the day At night a second line of parked vehicles runs parallel to the autos While on the odd day there might still be fines charged what goes unnoticed is the nuisance caused by garages and puncture service spots where twowheelers are perenially parkedWhile one garage is at the corner that connects Devidas Lane to SV Road another is opposite the Adani Electricity office Twowheelers are parked on the roads outside these garages which practically run from the footpath that they have encroached a space designated for pedestrians to walk onAlso ReadMumbai Advisory panel opposes BMCs plan for slab on Juhu Tara bridge Resident speak Abhishek Raut said There are large boards put up regarding the regulation and fines that will be charged But nobody seems to bother since there is no one present to take action against those breaking rules Avinash S said The parking lot is not open after 6 pm So most cars and tourist buses find a reason to park on the road in the late evening and night If this rampant parking issue is addressed we can reclaim the broad stretch of roadOfficial speak Sandhya Nandedkar ward officer RNorth ward said The parking lot is not open 24x7 since we havent yet finalised a contractor to look after it That tender is in process and we expect it to remain open at all hours soon After the contractor is appointed prescribed parking fees will be charged to all Also the traffic police has not been able to yet spare one towing vehicle for us to take action against defaulters Within seven days we shall have things streamlined The parking lot is currently offering free parking for limited time6pmPost which you canrsquot park in the parking lotGarages and auto service centres on the main road near Sangeeta Enclave in Mulund not only occupy the footpath but also the road Repair and servicing work are carried out on the road Location MulundClosest parking lot Runwal Greens Runwal Anthurium and Vikas PalazzoThe midday reporters found several parking violations near Vikas Palazzo and the road between Runwal Greens and Vikas Palazzo Garages and vehicle service centres are located within 500 metres of the parking lots While Vikas Palazzo is situated on the narrow JN Road it has several vehicles permanently parked right beside the public parking lot building In fact a small lane just behind the structure is lined with parked vehiclesDue to haphazarad parking JN Road is so narrow that a fire engine would find it difficult to enter in case of an emergency Also the digital electronic indicators put up on the road displaying the number of empty and filled slots in the parking lots is not functional Garages and auto service centres on the main road by Sangeeta Enclave Mulund Mitradham and near Saraswat Bank in Sarvodaya Nagar not only occupy the footpath but also the road All repairs and servicing activities are carried out on the roadResident speakA security guard from a building behind Vikas Palazzo who didnt wish to be identified said These are owned by local residents and parking here is convenient What is the logic of sending a local to a public parking lot which is not near the main gate but behind itOfficial speak Kishore Gandhi T ward officer did not respond to our callsRs 5000 ndash Rs 15000Amount two and fourwheelers will have to pay if found errantNew penalties for illegal parkingTwowheelersRs 5000 to Rs 8300ThreewheelersRs 8000 to Rs 12200Light motor vehiclesRs 10000 to Rs 15100Medium vehiclesRs 11000 to Rs 17600Heavy motor vehiclesRs 15000 to Rs 23250The fines will keep increasing daily for late payment charges till the maximum ratesAlso ReadBMC runs out of cold mix to fix potholes in MumbaiCatch up on all the latest Crime National International and Hatke news here Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updates