Gurugram’s parking crisis: Residents face hefty fines, poor solutions
Residents are bearing the brunt of the city’s inadequate parking infrastructure, with the traffic police imposing fines totalling over Rs 94 crore this year for wrong parking. A staggering 1.41 lakh challans have been issued as the city grapples with a growing number of vehicles and an insufficient number of parking spaces.
Despite several parking initiatives by the district administration and the Gurugram Metropolitan Development Authority (GMDA), such as street parking policies, app-based smart parking and multi-level parking under the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model, most of these plans remain unimplemented.
Congestion, disruption
The absence of proper parking spaces has led to severe congestion, particularly during peak hours. Key areas such as Sector 14, Old Gurudwara Road, Sohna Road, MG Road, Civil Lines, Sadar Bazaar, and Hero Honda Chowk continue to be hotspots for illegal parking. Traffic police have identified 20 other critical locations where illegal parking is a persistent problem.
Despite the GMDA placing signboards across these roads, enforcement remains weak, with residents often ignoring the warnings. In 2023, traffic police issued over 1.4 lakh challans for wrong parking, amounting to fines of Rs 94.6 crore.
Increased penalties, ineffective solutions
In response to the growing problem, the GMDA increased parking fines in 2022 — from Rs 500 to Rs 1,000 for cars and Rs 2,000 for heavy vehicles. The GMDA also provided more than 20 cranes to assist traffic police in towing illegally parked vehicles. Additionally, the GMDA launched the OneMap Gurugram app to help residents locate towed vehicles; however, it has proven to be ineffective.
A smart parking system in Sector 44, designed to ease the parking crisis, has also failed to materialise due to delays in obtaining necessary approvals from the Haryana Shahari Vikas Pradhikaran (HSVP). Similarly, a multi-level parking project near Sadar Bazaar, initially set to open by August 2023, remains pending.
Illegal parking lots
Illegal parking lots continue to thrive on government land, with the Chief Minister’s flying squad, in collaboration with the police and GMDA officials, shutting down over a dozen such operations this year. However, despite these efforts, the district administration has been unable to address the broader issue of parking, with the so-called “parking mafia” still operating unchecked.
Residents demand action
Local residents have expressed frustration with the lack of effective parking solutions and the growing fines. Dr Praveen Joon, a Sector 14 resident, said, “A big reason for wrong parking is the lack of authorise parking spaces. If the authorities provided enough parking, people would not have to park illegally. Instead of just penalising, they should address the root cause of the problem.”
Rajesh Goyal, a chemist based in the city, shared a similar experience. “My car was towed from outside the HUDA office. It took me an hour to find it and I had to pay a fine of Rs 1,500 to get it released. This is a failure of the district administration and people are the ones suffering because of the lack of proper parking spaces.”
As Gurugram’s parking crisis continues, residents are calling for meaningful solutions rather than punitive measures to alleviate the ongoing hardships.
