Fund-hit Howrah Municipal Corporation (HMC) is all set to introduce car parking fees in Howrah town in some select areas of Howrah Maidan as a preliminary step to stop random parking on the roads of the city. There were no provisions for collecting parking fees in Howrah and no designated parking zones either. Naturally cars, taxis and other commercial vehicles had a free run, parking wherever they found space without any fear of fine. 

HMC authorities believe that parking fees will fill their coffers with Rs 1 crore that will be used for the development of the town. “Now, all types of vehicles are parked on the side of the roads, obstructing smooth flow of traffic. We are going to clear this mess by introducing parking fees in Howrah town. This is part of our ongoing development programme,” said Shyamal Mitra, member of mayor-in-council (MIC) in charge of parking. He said that not only will car parking zones be introduced but also parking of vehicles here and there will not be allowed. 

“Parking is a problem in Howrah Maidan area because it is thickly populated. Yet we have identified three areas where cars can be parked against parking fees,” said Mitra. According to him, the areas identified are Bankim Setu, Nityadhan Mukherjee Road, MG Road near Sarat Sadan. In most of the areas, vehicles are parked on the side of the road. 

There are at least eight bus routes, which have their terminal at the heart of the town but barring one or two, there are no bus stands for parking the buses. The buses are parked on the side of the roads causing severe traffic jam. 

The three areas that have been identified as parking zones are busy market areas. People, who are aware of the traffic situation in Howrah town, believe that only three parking areas will not solve the problem of parking. Much before HMC’s decision to allow parking on Bankim Setu, hundreds of buses and mini buses were parked on the bridge. These buses and mini buses were supposed to be parked in Howrah Maidan area. But the spot in Howrah Maidan where the buses were earlier parked has been taken over for East West Metro construction. 

Most of the Calcutta-bound buses from Howrah Maidan are parked on Bankim Setu and rest of the buses are parked on MG Road near Sarat Sadan. A section of engineers of Howrah Improvement Trust (HIT) objected to the way buses and taxis are parked on the bridge. “The bridge is meant for plying of vehicles, not for parking. The constant pressure of  buses is damaging the bridge,” said an HIT engineer. He thought buses should be immediately removed for saving the bridge. 

“We have decided to allow parking of cars and taxis only on one portion of the bridge that has been lying unused for long, not on the entire bridge,” said Mitra. 

A large number of taxis are parked at Phanshitala near the District Library and at Church Road. After the parking areas are fixed, these taxis will have to go.

It is necessary to remove the taxis from Phanshitala that block the entrance to the library,” said Nishith Sarkar, an employee of the District Library. But he doubted if the floating taxis would go from the spot as it was easy for them to pick up passengers from there.  

Nityadhan Mukherjee Road that is identified as one of the parking zones by the HMC is also located near the Howrah Maidan. The stretch from Howrah police station to Bangabasi More can be used for parking. The road is considerably wide and there is enough space for parking taxis, cars and other vehicles. But on the days of Mangalar Haat the entire stretch is occupied by  vendors leaving little space for car parks.  

Nityadhan Mukherjee Road is not only occupied on Tuesdays, the day of retail trade, but also on Mondays when wholesale trade takes place. “At least a dozen market complexes are located on Nityadhan Mukherjee Road. On Mondays and Tuesdays, both retail and wholesale trade go on inside and outside the markets,” said Sheikh Ohidul, a wholesale garment trader. He said that a large number of commercial vehicles load and unload sacks of garments occupying the road on Mondays and Tuesdays. 

“Nityadhan Mukherjee Road is ideal for a parking zone. The road is near the market place of Howrah Maidan. But how can this road be declared as parking zone without stopping the garment trade on the spot on Mondays and Tuesdays,” asked Umesh Rai, a resident of Kings Road, Salkia. 

He also wondered how taxis and private cars can be parked on the narrow MG Road at daytime when a large number of Howrah-bound buses from Calcutta took the road. “Only a handful of cars and taxis can be parked on daytime. It is not clear where the rest of the taxis and private cars can be parked,” said Rai. 

There are many other roads in Howrah city where taxis, private cars and commercial vehicles are parked causing traffic obstruction. Drainage Canal Road, East West Road, GT Road, Panchanantala Road are some of them.