Pune: The civic body’s pay-and-park scheme is yet to be implemented, nearly two months after it was announced.The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) had proposed introducing the facility on six major roads across the city, with parking charges fixed at Rs 4 per hour for two-wheelers and Rs 20 per hour for four-wheelers. The selected roads include JM Road, FC Road, Vimannagar, Balewadi High Street, Bibvewadi and Laxmi Road.The scheme, planned to be implemented jointly with the city police to curb haphazard roadside parking, has been delayed, prompting the administration to consider retendering the project next week.The proposal has drawn mixed reactions from residents and citizen activists. While some believe the move will help regulate parking and ease traffic congestion, others argue that the civic body has failed to provide adequate off-street parking despite a steady rise in the number of vehicles, leaving motorists with no option but to park on roads.Vivek Velankar of Sajag Nagarik Manch, a citizens’ group, said that although the PMC identified several public parking reservations in the development plan, these have not been properly utilised. “The administration should first create adequate parking infrastructure. Introducing pay-and-park on roads only promotes on-street parking, which is not a solution,” he said.Regular commuters have also raised concerns over illegal and wrong-side parking.“Wrong-side and haphazard parking creates trouble for commuters. It is a nuisance, especially during nighttime and peak hours. The previous pay-and-park initiatives did not prove effective. The administration must find a better solution,” said Ameya Nipankar, a regular visitor to Balewadi High Street.Residents said the areas chosen for the pay-and-park scheme are popular shopping hubs that attract large numbers of visitors.“The demand for parking is high, and limited options often result in double and illegal parking,” a shopper on FC Road said.A civic official said there is no immediate plan to create additional parking spaces on these roads; instead, the focus is on streamlining parking to ensure smooth traffic flow.Civic officials said the administration will revise the tenders for the pay-and-park initiative and reissue them within a week.”Certain changes are being made to the tender terms and conditions to attract more bidders and encourage competition. This will help put a more effective pay-and-park system in place,” said Dinkar Gojare, a senior PMC official and project coordinator.
