Multiplying vehicles shrink parking spaces, Imphal city lands in distress
Source: The Sangai Express / Sundari Yumnam

Imphal, August 18 2014: Cities like NCR Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Guwahati & Imphal are fighting the burden of population growth which is only aggravated by the ever rising number of automobiles .

All these inter-related variables of civilisation might have led to a greater GDP and higher standard of living while on the other side of the picture, it breeds an acute problem of parking since space remains a constant entity whereas variables like population, construction, industrialisation and trade keep increasing their numbers in an uncontrolled, haphazard fashion.

In Manipur, the transit capacity of vehicles is small not even half of that of Sri Lanka which is about 1.6 per 1 sq.

km.

The number of registered vehicles now is more than 2,23,000 that is almost 10% of the total population (2,855,794 according to 2011 Census).

Heavy and dense traffic movement occurs from north to south i.e.from Singjamei to Senapati or Churachandpur whereas there is little or less navigation towards Ukhrul or Jiribam.

As the trade epicentre is Imphal, 90% of the vehicles converge and ply towards it.

The busiest streets of Imphal pass through Babupara, Kangla, Paona & Thangal Bazaars, North AOC, Nagamapal and Lamphel.

These roads are amongst the most accident-prone and traffic-jam zones.

A view of the highway-turned parking lots in front of the Secretariat

In Bengaluru, malls like Big Bazar, Forum and MNCs like Accenture, Oracle have adequate, well-planned parking slots-usually in the basement of the building.

At home, while Classic Hotel do have this facility although not sufficient, other industrial & business establishments like Vishal Mall, Gambhir Shopping Complex, Singjamei Supermarket, SBI & ICICI banks & Nirmala Hotel lack the basic parking amenities.

Located in the crowded business hub of MG Avenue, Nirmalabas School is in dire need of playground space, lets forget parking! Doctors and patients cannot keep their vehicles at peace outside Imphal Hospital and Research Centre as well as Babina Diagnostic Centre, Lamphel for fear of theft, not just want of space.

People also face a tough time commuting around the offices of BSNL or Secretariat or BSEM at Babupara as one-third of the road is occupied by parked vehicles.

Traffic jam is a common sight during prime time of office arrival and departure.

"It will be a good idea if all these offices including CM's bungalow be shifted away to more favourable locations", a traffic official said.

A good sign is the shifting of the Assembly office from its earlier location in the heart of Imphal city to Chingmeirong.

One proposal for easing traffic problem in Imphal city is construction of a flyover bridge over the junctions between Paona & Thangal Bazaars.

Over the last 14 years, the State has witnessed an immense rise in the number of auto-rickshaws- 2226 in 2000 to 13377 in 2014, two-wheelers- 53695 in 2000 to 189691 in 2014, cars-4870 in 2000 to 24838 in 2014 & bus -1461 in 2000 to 2700 in 2014 .

M Umananda (48), a parking agent of the apex body Ulla, gave a brief report of how the present temporary market at Thangal Bazaar has encroached into almost one-third of the parking space which accommodates almost 20/30 four-wheelers and 100 two-wheelers a day.

Accumulation of heaps of garbage overlooked by the Municipality aggravates the situation still more.

Just as road-widening is becoming a growing necessity, deck parking system using layer technologies & creation of a parking basement prior to construction of any multi-storeyed vertical building is equally important.

Informal parking system, outdated road-traffic management, bulk-entry of auto-rickshaws in the Manipur traffic scene that gradually substituted rickshaws & mini-buses, the municipality's policy of making business out of street-parking and lack of civic sense and violation of traffic rules make vehicular movement in Imphal city chaotic and exasperating.

Christina, an NEISS staff, said that approximately 1000 vehicles are parked alongside the roads of Paona Bazaar that uses nearly half of the road space.

A Constable Gojendra Thoudam(25), said that people do not strictly obey the one-way traffic rule and even resort to double-parking at Paona Bazar lanes.

He said, "The whole blame lands on us despite heavy efforts" .

Phajabi , a snacks vendor at Thangal Bazar, complained that improper parking blocks the visibility of the commodities thus reducing sales.

A faculty at MU and a resident of Nagamapal suggested shifting the Power Dept to Langol and auto parking be made in its place.

He pointed out that there are accidents due to disorganised traffic and random parking during night hours.

The policy of road widening along Tiddim line, Sagolband, Waheng Leikai & Singjamei-Moreh line would be neutralised if there is no alternative to street-parking.

Majority of the people prefer riding in fancy cars and two-wheelers instead of using public transport systems.

The carrying capacity of a bus is around 34-36 whereas that of an auto or a car is just 5-8.The more the bus users, the greater is the space available.

According to a high-ranking official of the Manipur Transport Office, Government should shift markets and push them out to sub-urban areas like Canchipur, Lilong, Koirengei and Mongsangei & lay out a plan for mini, sub-mini and supermarkets to avoid congestion.

He suggested that the government should charge differential parking rates, with high rates in areas well connected by public transport to discourage people from taking their personal vehicles.

MSRTC was liquidated in 2003 after it underwent a miserable setback in the traffic battle.

He was of the opinion that traffic and parking management be outsourced & privatised as in the case of RIMS and Imphal Hotel for more efficiency.

"Licenses should be cancelled for those buildings which commercialise parking space and spill onto public roads.

An integrated co-ordinated effort of the Traffic Regulation and Parking Control (TRPC), IMC, police, legal experts, transport organisations, MAHUD, Town Planning Department, Works Dept.

is a must for tackling this issue.

The Govt is reportedly looking forward to a comprehensive mobility plan and intermediate passenger transport system to curb the havoc of parking and escalating land prices", he explained.