GUWAHATI, Oct 2 - Parliamentary Affairs Minister Chandra Mohan Patowary yesterday told the Legislative Assembly that the multi-storey automated parking lot constructed by the Guwahati Metropolitan Development Authority (GMDA) earned Rs 2.55 lakh during the period January-August this year and the parking space would go a long way in easing traffic congestion besides serving its main purpose of providing parking space on the busy RG Baruah Road.
Patowary, who was replying to a call attention motion by AIUDF legislator Aminul Islam regarding a newspaper report alleging that the parking place remained largely unutilised, said police and the other departments concerned were being moved to prohibit parking of vehicles along a specified stretch of the RG Baruah Road for effective utilisation of the new parking place.
Patowary said the Guwahati Central Mall located nearby and the under-construction Times Square Mall had requested the GMDA authorities to allow the parking of additional vehicles that cannot be accommodated in their own parking spaces in the GMDA parking lot.
�It has been seen that lots of visitors to the Central Mall, especially on Saturdays and Sundays, park their vehicles in the new GMDA parking, leading to higher revenue collection. With another big shopping complex coming up in the vicinity, the multi-storey parking will be effectively utilised,� he said.
Patowary said that since the citizens of Guwahati were new to the idea of an automated parking lot, they would take some time to get used to it. �We are certain that the days ahead will see more and more people using the parking space,� he said.
The automated parking lot which was opened on October 17 last year can accommodate 302 four-wheelers and 25 two-wheelers. It remains open from 10 am to 11 pm every day.
