2,284 motorists fined over wrong parking in 2021 so far

ISLAMABAD – Islamabad Traffic Police (ITP) issued 2,284 fine tickets to motorists for parking their vehicles at wrong places during the ongoing year. 

The authority also impounded some vehicles, creating hurdle in smooth flow of traffic during the same period, said a senior official in ITP. 

Talking to APP, he said Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Traffic Farrukh Rashid has directed all zonal DSPs to ensure implementation on traffic laws while demonstrating courteous attitude towards citizens. 

The personnel on duty were strictly asked to adopt policy of Pehle Salam-Phir Kalam. 

The SSP, he said, was constantly monitoring the performance of cops, following directions of Inspector General of Police (IGP) Islamabad Qazi Jamil ul Rehman to ensure smooth flow of traffic in the city. 

The SSP appealed the drivers to park their vehicles at designated places instead of occupying footpaths as it was the right of pedestrians. 

Meanwhile, capital dwellers called for building parking plazas, especially in the city’s commercial centres where the worst traffic congestion could be seen on daily basis.

They said that shortage of space in the commercial areas was the major reason for traffic congestion, adding that they are often left with no other option but to park their vehicles on the roads and linking streets which only adds to the parking and traffic congestion in the city.

“The capital’s initial master plan has either been violated or has been amended since commercial areas are increasing without allocating sufficient space for car parks, which compromises the beauty of the city, once declared among the most beautiful cities of the world,” said Babar Saleem, a social activist. Arsalan, a resident of Sector F-7, stressed the need to sensitise the public to abide by traffic rules and regulations to ensure the smooth flow of traffic.

He pointed to the multi-storey parking plazas which have been built in some cities of Punjab, as a possible solution to the capital’s parking issue.

Farwa Hassan, a working woman, criticised the federal capital’s civic and traffic authorities for failing to build sufficient parking places.

“Commercial areas have been extended in the city without allocating land for car parks and ignoring the fact that the number of vehicles plying on the city’s roads are going up every day,” she noted.  When contacted, Capital Development Authority (CDA) officials blamed shop owners for parking problems, who they claimed that encroached parking spaces in the commercial areas of the city. 

Citizens should be sensitised about the traffic management system and handsome parking fee should be imposed for revenue generation that will eventually help for constructing new parking plazas, they suggested. 

The federal civic agency has decided to build six multi-storey parking plazas at major business centres of the city, three in Blue Area, one in F-8 and two in F-10 Markaz.

The commencement of construction was planned in June-July this year. It would have a parking capacity of about 3,500 vehicles, according to a CDA document available with APP. 

Few floors of Blue Area parking plaza would be used to meet the construction cost of the entire project.

The rooftop of the plazas would be used for gardening and promoting green characters, it added. 

According to an estimate of traffic police around 350,000 vehicles enter and leave Islamabad every day, while an equivalent number are owned by the capital’s residents.

The growth rate of vehicle ownership in Islamabad is much higher than the national growth rate. 

Article source: https://nation.com.pk/03-May-2021/2-284-motorists-fined-over-wrong-parking-in-2021-so-far