Editorial
Random parking menace
Stop sitting on recommendations
Mindless parking of vehicles on city roads has become a civic menace to say the least. The problem has come to such a pass that even pedestrian movement along commercial buildings or shopping complexes has become extremely difficult, at times even risky. We watch with trepidation the vehicle owners pulling up into an empty space readily available and keeping the vehicle parked for hours together. Hundreds of cars and other private and commercial vehicles are illegally parked all over the city, occupying at least two-thirds of the road space, creating unbearable traffic blockage.
Most traffic personnel remain occupied controlling traffic movements at busy intersections, they are thus unable to act against illegal parking. Moreover, extremely inadequate number of wreckers, four at the moment, out of which two are functional at anytime is a hindrance to law enforcement, but is it all down to wreckers? For, one can see visible manifestation of poor law enforcement featured by random parking and stopovers at will. Sometimes the traffic policemen are seen stopping transports with scant regard for the flow of traffic.
A penalty of meagre Taka 200 for illegal parking or towing a car away once in a while can only touch the fringe of the problem.
Admittedly, the manpower strength of the DMP (traffic) is far too inadequate for the magnitude of public mobility and the huge number of vehicles of different descriptions plying the streets. Furthermore, there are logistical constraints. Resultantly, there is not only poor law enforcement but also allows scope for corruption. Therefore, the manpower and logistical deficits will have to be addressed.
The predicament is mainly due to lack of authorized parking lots. In most cases, the owners have let out spaces meant for parking to variegated businesses. Even the basement spaces have been rented out for other purposes. So there is an issue of recovering designated spaces lost to other trades. Coupled with that, new parking lots, both underground and multi-storied need to be built up though bank financing.
Letting out parking lots can itself become good business, along with smoothening traffic all around.
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