Driving away Kochi’s parking woes
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Given the nature of Kochi’s parking woes, the building industry has become acutely aware of the need to give due importance to creating parking facilities, reports K. A. Martin.
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– Photo: Mahesh Harilal
Space problem: Vehicle parking is becoming an expensive and difficult proposition.
Taking a walk from the south end of M.G. Road to its north end in Kochi on a typical business day tells you that there are as many vehicles parked on the western and eastern flanks of the road as are crawling on the traffic lanes.
So one may conclude that most of the private vehicles idle in parking spaces — public or private – longer than they are on the roads.
It is a big headache to the owner of a luxury car who is inching from south to north looking for a space that will accommodate his car. And a bigger one to the city planners who always think in short-term strategies about a problem that has long-term consequences and the capability to bring the entire economic train to a standstill.
While the economy is on the double and land prices going through, the roof parking problems have not eased.
The all-around prosperity has led to more and more people buying personal vehicles, just as good road-building, parking planning or parking management appear nowhere on the horizon of the general economic agenda.
Unwelcome sign
The downside of course is that it will gradually come to hit the economic growth as experts on parking management see in availability of sufficient parking space a sign of welcome to a town or a city. They point out that parking space makes one of the first impressions about a city or a town.
Like the city planners, the building industry has been set thinking about meeting the new challenges. Buyers of flats or living apartments now demand full parking space. Availability of 100 per cent parking space makes one of the first impressions about a project, perhaps along with the location.
The builders have realised it too. It is no longer possible to sell an apartment or a flat without sufficient parking space. Though the building industry in Kerala did not pay much attention to parking facilities in the early stages of the new residential culture in the 90s, there is now a definite push towards providing full parking space.
If lack of parking space pushed down prices of flats in the past, no builder now thinks of a project without parking space.
Naturally, the price of parking space is realised from the buyers of flats or residential apartments as prices spiral.
There is no doubt among the builders that providing sufficient parking space makes a project saleable.
A tough nut
However, parking has not proved too tough a nut to crack for the organised sector, says George E. George, Chairman of Kerala Builders’ Forum, representing the building industry in Kerala.
The organised sector has taken care of the parking problems and has made sure that their customers are provided with the space required for parking. The cost, of course, varies.
Just as parking space is one of the first experiences in an urban centre, a buyer of living apartment would look to park his vehicle easily and comfortably.
Most people who can afford to buy a flat or an apartment own a car and demand parking space, says Mr. George.
Cost factor
He said that the cost of parking space vary from Rs.1.5 lakh to Rs.2.5 lakh depending on the location.
The prices have been going up steadily with the land prices. A square foot of land now can cost up to Rs.1,100 in some locations while in some it costs up to Rs.750. Definitely the price is reflected in the cost of parking space.
While some builders are able to find sufficient parking space over-ground, some have resorted to underground or multi-level parking facilities.
Basement parking practices have given way to multi-level parking. Vertical expansion of parking space helps to a great extent in solving the space constraint.
The psychological resistance to multi-level parking is gradually giving way to the realization of space constraints. And the customers are able to understand the situation and they have little or no difficulty in accepting and using multi-level parking facilities.
Mr. George said the in one of the projects in Kakkanad, the builder had taken to multi-level parking facility to meet the requirement for space.
While the organised sector appears to have overcome the problem, parking continues to be a big problem in some areas where dwelling units come up on smaller spaces. Often parking spills on to the roads.
While the builders try to find parking space they also face the reduction in Floor Area Ratio making every inch of land count in the economics of the industry.
FAR factor
The building industry has been calling for a revision in FAR considering the new trends in planning elsewhere in the country.
The FAR constraints and spiralling land price tend to squeeze the buyers as the price of a living apartment goes up in proportion to these factors.
Mr. George said that sufficient parking space makes a project easily saleable. This is applicable to the overall scene in the city where parking continues to be unplanned and disorganised totally.
The Builders’ Forum Chairman said that the builders would only be keen to take up a project to make parking more scientific in the city. He recalled that a project was mooted to use the outer rings of the Maharaja’s Grounds to park vehicles.
Using space
The outer rings can accommodate around 1,500 cars and the parking problem on M.G. Road between South and Shenoy’s could easily be solved by using the space.
He pointed to the easing of the roads of parked vehicles when the Durbar Hall grounds were opened for parking vehicles.
Using the outer rings of the Maharaja’s Grounds will in no way affect the ground being used for sports and games, he said.
Another large open space available for parking in the city is the stadium near KSRTC bus depot. The stadium can be used for parking when no programmes are being held there or even during daytime as most programmes are organised in the evenings.
With companies that can manage the parking problems in a city, it would be easy for the City administration to engage a company to find a solution on a permanent and scientific basis.
The need of the hour is scientific planning, optimum use of the space available and introduction of new methods of multi-level parking so that the problem can be overcome.
Mr. George also pointed out that although parking space is limited in the city, there is no method of fully utilizing the space available. There is no segregation of motor bikes and car parking spaces.
Optimum use, scientific planning and finding more space are needed immediately as the city and the building industry in the State gear up to face a new era of rapid economic growth.
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