Hero Image

Low footfall: Noida cuts parking space by 70%

Noida: With footfall coming down in market areas due to the Covid-19 outbreak, the Noida Authority has scrapped parking at as many as six places, including the Film City and Sector 18 areas, and reduced the space of 59 other parking lots by nearly 70%.

The decision has been taken as many contractors have been finding it difficult to pay for the entire parking area due to less revenue, officials said, adding that the Authority will soon start towing away vehicles found parked on roads where parking has been scrapped.



A Noida Authority official told TOI that the surface parking on the roads of Sector 1, sectors 1 to 6, Sector 16A that covers the Film City area, the inner road of Sector 3, the road between sectors 3-4 and roads of Sector 18 has been scrapped. In Sector 18, anyway, the Noida Authority is planning to introduce a “vehicle-free” zone, he said.

On the other roads with 59 parking spaces, the Authority has divided these areas into as many as five clusters, where the contractors are now allowed to use only 30% of the lot for the next two months. The existing contracts will be reviewed after October when fresh tenders will be floated based on ground situation, officials said.

Mohan Vashisht, one of the contractors, told TOI that since lockdown was introduced, they were finding it difficult to earn revenue.

“Previously, the Authority was earning as many as Rs 2 crore on a monthly basis from parking spaces across Noida. However, after lockdown, there’s little business left as all companies are shut.”

Meanwhile, fearing business loss, market associations have demanded that parking charges be relaxed, especially at the multi-level parking in Sector 18. “Due to Covid, already, very few people are visiting the market for shopping. Removing surface parking altogether would discourage the few customers,” said Sushil Jain, the president of the Sector 18 market association.

However, Shyodan Singh, senior manager of Noida traffic cell, said the decision was taken across Noida and not just for Sector 18.

“The MLP and surface parking in Sector 18 have been clubbed so that only MLP is used and no car is allowed on surface parking in Sector 18 as only one contractor caters to both the areas,” he said.

READ ON APP