On one hand, the car makers are worried about the sliding sales and trying every possible tactic to woo the customers. On the other hand, the Government is trying its luck at reducing the number of private vehicles on the road and promote public transport. There have been instances earlier where the State Governments have tried out new schemes and rules to promote public transport and thus reduce the traffic on the roads. One such example is the “Bus Day” concept which is being followed in Bengaluru. On 4th of every month commuters are asked to use public transport instead of their private vehicles and this has had seen a good response.
The Rajasthan High Court came up with a total different game plan few weeks back. The court ordered the Rajasthan Government to register only those vehicles whose owners had enough space for parking. Well, the space is just not enough, one has to provide parking space proof too in order to get the vehicle registered. Taking cues from this, now the Delhi Government is trying to follow the suite. It was only recent when the Delhi Government set a proposal on implementing residential parking fees, and now they too want the parking space proof. The Commissioner of transport has already been asked to check for the possibility of having such rule implemented in the state. Well, that is not all. The Government is looking for other options too in order to curb the rising vehicle registrations.
“While this proposal might help deter people from purchasing more vehicles, the fact remains that cars from NCR also enter the city and this proposal can succeed only if the entire region is involved in such a plan,” a transport official said.
One such option being considered for talks is charging a monthly fees from residents for parking their vehicles in the on-street parking space. The Government has already proposed issuing a permit of Rs 1,500 applicable for one vehicle per family or shop in residential areas. In fact, two months back, Delhi Government had also issued a notice to increase the parking fees to Rs.50 for peak hours and Rs. 30 for the non-peak hours. The concern for the Government is the increasing registrations when there is lack of space for parking. Everyday more than 1,000 vehicles are registered in Delhi alone and 48 percent of them are private vehicles. But, will the Government be successful in implementing such laws? We feel that there would be a sure shot opposition to it from every side.
Source – Economic Times