Overcharged at Parking? Mumbai Motorists Face Chaos, Demand Transparency

Mumbai: Navigating Mumbai's bustling streets is already a challenge, but finding affordable and fair parking adds another layer of frustration for motorists. Despite predetermined rates for various vehicle types, reports of rampant overcharging by parking contractors are widespread, leaving residents feeling cheated and helpless.

The lack of a centralized complaint mechanism compounds the problem. Motorists unsure where to voice their grievances end up bouncing between the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), traffic police, and individual parking contractors, often encountering a bureaucratic maze with no clear resolution.

Compounding the frustration is the BMC's own inconsistent approach. While promoting tourism by waiving parking fees at popular spots like Girgaon, Juhu Chowpatty, and Gateway of India, it simultaneously reduces fees on Sundays and holidays. However, many motorists remain unaware of these reduced rates, leaving them vulnerable to being exploited by unscrupulous contractors.

A Broken System Ripe for Abuse

Data paints a stark picture. In 2022-23, the BMC collected a staggering ₹156.26 crore from on-street and off-street parking. Yet, this hefty revenue hasn't translated into improved parking facilities or robust grievance redressal systems. The question arises: why can't the BMC utilize these funds to establish a centralized complaint mechanism and hold parking contractors accountable?

Reservation for women's savings groups and unemployed people

The idea was to empower women by giving work to women's savings groups and to give work to educated unemployed organizations. To employ unemployed youth, it was considered to manage the parking lot by women's savings groups and educated unemployed organizations, protection of the rights of the disabled, and equal opportunities. Accordingly, the BMC administration has broken the monopoly of old contractors. It has been proposed to give 50% of the parking lot contracts to women's savings groups, 25% to educated unemployed organizations, and 3% to disabled organizations for parking lot management.

Current parking facilities

BMC's off-street parking - 32

BMC's current on-street parking - 91

New parking spaces - 6 

New parking spaces

Total spaces - 97

Closed spaces - 24

Open spaces - 3

Ward level spaces - 6

Total closed spaces - 33