Kolkata: The Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) on Monday admitted that the car parking system needed an overhaul and steps were being taken to introduce an app-based parking facility that would be easy to use and transparent for motorists and also help the civic body augment revenues.
According to a source, the system may be launched in a couple of months.The tender may be floated shortly.
Replying to the opposition’s allegations that the citizens were being harassed by organized parking racket, often forcing the motorists to pay an exorbitant amount, mayor Firhad Hakim said the problems would be resolved once the new parking system is introduced.
However, sources in the KMC car parking department conceded that barring a few parking lots, the attendants manning majority of the city’s parking lots weren’t using POS machines that were made mandatory for making payment (parking fee) online last year. “Despite repeated reminders, majority of agencies has stopped using the machines. We had introduced POS machines at the parking lots to make sure that the attendants don’t fleece motorists. But now we need to enforce the rules afresh,” said a KMC parking department official.
Participating in the budget debate, BJP councillor Sajal Ghosh on Monday alleged that the civic body was lagging behind in offering a transparent car parking system to the citizens despite making repeated promises.
MMiC, KMC parking department, Debasis Kumar, assured that once the app-based new parking system was followed in the city, the motorists will benefit. Once the app-based system is introduced, a citizen can take help of it and get to know about the vacancy of parking lots and accordingly plan to park his/her car at the desired parking lot, said Kumar. The mayor said the KMC had set a target of collecting Rs 334 crore from car parking this fiscal.