The parking ban on Church Street put in place earlier in the month might soon be revoked once officials install automated parking meters on the renovated road.
Parking was banned on Church Street on March 6 as per a notification from Police Commissioner T Suneel Kumar to make the busy street pedestrian-friendly. The notification came after a directive from Chief Minister Siddaramaiah.
The notification said, “After the stretch from Brigade Road to St Mark’s Road has been renovated under the TenderSURE project, Church Street has become narrow and there are commercial complexes, hotels, bars and restaurants where many pedestrians use the stretch. Hence, to give priority for pavement users, parking will be prohibited on both sides of the stretch (sic)," as per Deccan Herald.
However, Additional Commissioner of Police (Traffic) R Hithendra said installing parking meters may make police officials rethink the decision to ban parking.
“If parking meters are installed, there will be some discipline among vehicle users,” Hithendra said speaking to Times of India.
A meeting is scheduled for Monday where traffic cops and other stakeholders, including Mayor R Sampath Raj, are set to discuss whether a decision can be taken to lift the parking ban or other alternatives can be brought in.
Designated parking locations with separate parking spaces reserved for women were part of the plans in the overhaul of Church Street.
The road was inaugurated on March 1, but the work is yet to be completed.
Work on the 750m stretch started on February 22, 2017 and was supposed to be completed on July 1, 2017. Once work started and they began digging, the workers discovered British-era sewage pipelines and water pipelines. As the contractors had to lay new stormwater drains, sewage and Cauvery water pipelines in addition to the stretch being revamped, the contractors missed four deadlines - July 1, August 1, December 1 and January 31.
“The BBMP (Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike) has managed to complete all the work except for the construction of the four-wheeler parking bays. This separate parking space can accommodate 60 two-wheelers and 40 four-wheelers,” BBMP Chief Engineer (Road Widening), KT Nagaraj had said.
Meanwhile, traffic police officials are also mulling a decision to restrict entry of vehicles into Church Street in the evening between 5 and 10 pm.