Surface parking charges set to rise by 50%

Parking charges in Delhi are set to rise with the Supreme Court-appointed monitoring committee sending its recommendations to hike the rates by 50% to the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) and the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC).

The surface parking charges will rise from R10 per hour to R15 per hour in NDMC areas. In MCD areas, the current charge of R10 for 10 hours and R20 for the entire day may be increased to R15 for 10 hours and R30 for 24 hours.

According to a senior NDMC official, council members will take up the matter for discussion in the next meeting. “Parking charges will be raised in the discussion. We had not increased it because we were waiting for the recommendation,” said the official said.

The monitoring committee has suggested the hike in surface parking rates in order to encourage the use of public transport. The committee felt the need to increase surface parking charges to encourage commuters to use multi-level parking lots coming up across the city.

“At present, there are some complaints about the multi-level parking at Sarojini Nagar. NDMC should first fix it so that car owners don’t shy away from parking their cars there. We want to free the streets of cars,” said Bhure Lal, chairman of the monitoring committee.

The NDMC will soon inaugurate another automated multi-level parking at Baba Kharak Singh Marg. It will accommodate 1,408 cars.

With MCD polls ahead, the civic body may delay the implementation.

“Rates can be hiked only after the standing committee passes a resolution,” said a senior official of MCD.

MCD will soon complete its automated multi-level parking at Kamla Nagar and will need to increase its surface parking charges so that car owners are encouraged to use it.

New charges
MCD: 155 surface parking lots
NDMC: 41 surface parking lots

Current rates
MCD: R10 for 10 hours and
Rs 20 for 24 hours
NDMC: R10 per hour

Proposed rates
MCD: R15 for 10 hours and R30 for 24 hours
NDMC: R15 per hour