No end to parking woes in Tambaram
Commuters park their vehicles in any space they find sometimes, even in front of a few shops, or turn into any of the streets and park wherever they find empty spaces or somewhere near a house.
Haphazard parking of two-wheelers at Tambaram market
CHENNAI: Few years ago, the State government had changed Tambaram municipality into a Corporation, assuring better infrastructure and smart urban solutions. Though property tax and municipal water supply charges have increased, one factor has remained constant – parking woes.
Illegal parking is one of the major infrastructure challenges in Tambaram, which also leads to many traffic-related issues.
Demand from residents and commercial establishments for Multi Level Parking has been growing over the years. “I was supposed to rush to the hospital one day but a visitor to the Tambaram market had parked the car in front of my house. It was impossible for me to take the car out. I booked a taxi to visit the hospital,” recalled S Krishnakumar, a resident of Tambaram.
Lakhs of people visit the Tambaram market every day. People from nearly 200 villages visit the market for shopping in retail or wholesale. Since the Corporation has not made any arrangements for a parking facility in Tambaram, commuters park their vehicles in any space they find – sometimes, even in front of a few shops, or turn into any of the streets and park wherever they find empty spaces or somewhere near a house.
When the parking near the market gets full, commuters park their two-wheelers on the Tambaram Service Road near the flyover. There is a private hospital on the road, but most of the time, there is no space for even ambulance facilities to park there.
So, as a preventive measure, some residents had placed ‘No Parking’ sign boards outside their houses. Even shopkeepers had placed the boards and allowed only their customers to park their vehicles there.
“Every day I find four-wheelers and two-wheelers parked in front of our gate. To prevent this, we placed ‘No Parking’ sign boards there but this new HC rule has prevented that also,” lamented S John, a resident near Tambaram market. “The problem is not only in the Tambaram market. Other areas in the suburbs like Perungalathur, Chromepet, and Pallavaram also face similar issues.”
When contacted, the Deputy Mayor of Tambaram Corporation, G Kamaraj, admitted to the parking woes and said: “There are plans to develop the Tambaram market by constructing more shops with multi-floor parking facilities. The plan is in the initial stage and soon, the work will begin.”