Rise in parking fees at rail stations outside BBMP areas

The parking fee in railway stations outside BBMP limits has been doubled with the per day fee for two-wheelers going up from Rs 20 to Rs 50.  

The railways had earlier fixed Rs 10 (12 hours) and Rs 20 (per day) fee for two-wheelers. The latest tender, however, allows parking managers to collect Rs 10 for two hours, Rs 20 between two  and four hours, Rs 30 between four and 10 hours, Rs 40 between 10  and 16 hours with Rs 50 fixed for beyond, up to 24 hours.

Thousands of commuters will have to shell out more than double for parking their two-wheelers at  Kengeri, Soldevanahalli and other railway stations outside of the BBMP limits.  In September, the railways had increased parking fee at 21 railway stations in BBMP areas. Those who park cars will have to pay through the nose with the daily parking fee going up to Rs 300.

The increase of fee in suburban areas will, however, hurt many. "This is a huge hike in one go. I park my bike at the Kengeri railway station every day to travel to Mysuru for work and return in the evening. Now, the cost of parking is more than the train fare. Thousands of us will be hurt by this," Dhananjay, a passenger, said.

But N S Sridharmurthy, the  senior divisional commercial manager, said  hiking the fee was essential to make the arrangement viable. "For five years, the parking fee was the same for city and suburban areas. Now, we have classified railway stations  into BBMP and non-BBMP ones. The fee has been fixed by  taking into consideration the cost of living," he said.  

Non-fare revenue from parking, advertisement and rent will help the department to meet some of its expenditures. The fee will continue for the next three years, he added.