Bengaluru’s parking mess: GBA’s citywide plan faces delays despite pilot push

Bengaluru: The lack of adequate parking for two-wheelers and four-wheelers is a long-standing problem in Bengaluru. On every street, vehicles are parked haphazardly along the roadside, restricting pedestrian and sometimes vehicular movement.

The Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) has introduced a new pay-and-park initiative for the city, but it may still be a while before it is fully implemented, as the process in each corporation is still in the tender stage.

In 2020, the erstwhile Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) introduced a smart parking system in 10 locations in the Central Bengaluru District (CBD), including MG Road, St Mark’s Road, Museum Road, and other key stretches. 

According to this plan, people could use the yellow kiosks installed on the footpaths by themselves to generate a parking ticket. An app, called Namma Bengaluru Smart Parking App, was also developed for citizens to find parking spots and pay through it. However, the system failed to sustain over time, and the kiosks now lie idle, occupying portions of the footpaths.

The pay-and-park system returned to MG Road in September 2025. From Mayo Hall to the LIC building, the roadside has been used for parking. A private contractor is awarded the contract, and about five men collect parking fees. The price of parking two-wheelers for one hour is fixed at Rs 15 and cars at Rs 30.

Treating this as a pilot initiative, the GBA plans to introduce the pay-and-park system across the entire city in collaboration with the Directorate of Urban Land Transport (DULT). 

According to the DULT’s recommendations, three kinds of parking would be beneficial for the city. One being regular roadside parking, the second being any GBA land where a system like multi-level parking can be built, and the last being empty private land where prices can be set and collected by the land owner.

What corporations are doing

Commissioner for North Corporation, Pommala Sunil Kumar, informed DH that the same proposal by DULT will be implemented across all city corporations. “The tender process has begun. Under North Corporation, we are currently planning for a 4.1-kilometre road in Yelahanka. We also had plans for Hebbal, but the plans are yet to be finalised,” he explained.

For the Yelahanka project, the tenders are yet to be called. “We announced the tender for Rs 1.6 crores, but we did not have takers. We have reduced it to Rs 1.1 crore, and we have only one bidder, so we are in the process of finalising the tender,” said the Commissioner.

In the South Corporation, the authorities plan to implement the project in the Jayanagar constituency spanning over 31 kilometres. On Thursday, the corporation also launched a pilot project of the AI-based smart parking system. 

“The pilot study of the project has begun on the 27th main road of Jayanagar, and we have installed QR codes. A new app will be integrated into the system. Through the app, people will be able to check the empty spots, and when they arrive, they will know where to park,” according to the Chief Engineer of the South Corporation, Basavaraj Kabade.

AI-based cameras have been installed to update the status on the app. “We have brought in cameras, and there will be checking from the backend. There are absolutely zero cash transactions. One has to scan the QR code, and on the basis of the parking time, the money will be calculated,” he further explained.

There will be one person to monitor about 50-60 cars to make sure there are no violators. The tendering process for the project is yet to begin. 

“We are planning pay-and-park facilities for six roads. We had invited tenders, but we did not have bidders, so we are issuing the tenders again,” said Lokhande Snehal Sudhakar, Additional Commissioner for Bengaluru East City Corporation.

The authorities have no plans to introduce daily or monthly passes for regular users, for now. The GBA, in collaboration with the traffic department, has identified 66 new locations for Multi-Level Parking across the city. Currently, the facility is available near Freedom Park and Gandhi Bazar.

Impact of policy on the city

As the policy gradually takes shape,
experts have begun to take positions on how this new initiative could impact the city. 

Defunct pay parking system seen at Vittal Mallya Road Bengaluru.

D T Devare, a Bengaluru-based environmentalist, argued that a paid parking system would encourage more people to use public transport. “While I agree that public transport is inadequate, paid parking is required to disincentivise the use of private vehicles and reduce congestion. Also, people must realise that they cannot use expensive roadside parking spaces for free. Just because the authorities are not doing enough to increase public transport, people cannot enjoy the luxury of free parking,” said DT Devare.

He also opined that when more people use public transport, the pressure would be more on the government to make it more accessible and adequate.

DT Devare also pointed out that the Memorandum of Understanding between the state and Union governments for the metro projects, under the parking clause, states that the parking fee should be based on the market value of the land allotted for parking.

However, not everyone agrees with this view. Srikanth Narasimhan, Founder of the Bengaluru Navanirman Party, said, “The government must speed up the progress of metro projects and ensure they are completed soon. The frequency of the most-used buses must be increased, and the last-mile connectivity must be ensured. Until then, they cannot charge for all of this.” 

“If there are no good alternatives for private vehicles and people are charged for using private vehicles, should we stop commuting altogether?” he asked.

Parked vehicles on the busy Residency Road Bengaluru.

Public weigh over the policy

DH spoke to several regular two-wheeler and four-wheeler users, as they will be the ones most affected. While many of them pointed out that the prices set are expensive for daily users, others think it might bring some discipline to the city. 

Hari Kumar, a resident of Sheshadripuram, explained how parking spaces become important even with good public transport. “I am more than happy to use public transportation, but the last-mile connectivity is mostly absent. I again have to rely on my two-wheeler to get to the bus stop, and there are no parking facilities there. If there are free or affordable safe parking spaces, it would be helpful for us to take the public transport,” he explained. 

For Rashmi Nagaraj, a resident of Banashankari Sixth Stage, her two-wheeler is the more viable option. “My nearest metro station is about three kilometres away. If I have to use the metro, I have to pay the fare, the cost of transportation from the metro to my office, and parking for my two-wheeler. It is a very costly affair. I would rather use my two-wheeler,” she said.

Thousands like Rashmi end up needing a parking space. Many agreed that they would appreciate the system, but only if the parking rates were reasonable and affordable.

“A parking system is necessary in the city, but they should be able to enforce it right without loopholes. This should help in solving congestion caused by wrongly parked vehicles,” said Nishanth Saini, a resident of Uttarahalli.

Namratha G, a resident of Jayanagar, feels that parking facilities are desperately needed, especially in her locality. “As more commercial establishments have come up without their own parking facilities,
people have been parking on the roadside, creating traffic bottlenecks. They
should, in fact, raise the parking fee,” she argued

defunct pay parking system seen at St Mark

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