Bengaluru: Parking woes worry commuters ahead of Yellow Line inauguration

Ahead of the inauguration of Namma Metro's Yellow Line on August 10, citizens have been vocal about their concerns about the prevalent parking issues along the route.

While residents living along the route — from RV Road to Bommasandra — welcome the much-awaited metro connectivity, they are worried that getting to the stations won't be an easy task. For commuters who are dependent on their private vehicles for the last mile, the lack of parking remains one of the major concerns.

According to Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL), of the 16 metro stations, only one does not include any parking space. The rest of the stations have on-ground parking facilities available for two-wheelers and bicycles.

The Huskur Road station, sandwiched between Konappana Agrahara and Hebbagodi, is the only station without a parking space due to space constraints, a senior BMRCL official told DH.

However, making an exception for the Electronics City station, the other stations on the route only have minimal parking capacity, averaging around 150. Only about six stations have a parking capacity of over 200 two-wheelers. The largest parking space is at the Electronics City station — it can hold over 950 two-wheelers. The BMRCL also plans to allow car parking at the facility.

When DH paid a visit to stations along the line, the parking spaces attached to the stations came across as insufficient and ill-planned.

At the Jayadeva Hospital station — a double-elevated interchange hub between the Yellow and the upcoming Pink Line — all four entry points have designated parking areas for two-wheelers, in addition to a parking zone in the middle of the two stations, off the Outer Ring Road going towards Ragigudda. Except for the rectangular parking zone in the middle, the rest of the parking areas appear to be odd-shaped slivers of land. Combined with the constant traffic on the stretch and abrupt entryways, the parking space raises many concerns.

At the Silk Board station, traffic constantly blocks the entrance to the parking spaces and the drop-off zones. Bommansandra has one of the smallest parking spaces of the lot.

'Parking not a priority': BMRCL official

When planning the stations on the Yellow Line, parking was not a priority, as BMRCL does not intend to promote the use of private vehicles, a senior BMRCL official said.

"Availability of land remains one of the biggest hurdles in building bigger metro stations with ample parking space. But even so, our goal is to reduce the number of private vehicles on the road and not add to it. We understand the commuters' concerns and are working on improving last-mile connectivity," the official told DH.

Bigger parking spaces at the metro stations would be difficult to create and defeat the purpose of public transport, believes Srinivas Alavilli, a fellow at research organisation WRI India.

"We should move away from ‘park-and-ride’ kind of thinking. Studies show the majority of commuters walk to metros. The focus should be on building better footpaths and improving last-mile connectivity and not on building bigger parking facilities," he said.

Makeshift solutions

Residents on the Yellow Line stretch have already begun finding temporary solutions for their future parking problems.

A 43-year-old Bommasandra resident, who lives 4 km away from the station and travels to MG Road for work every day, plans to park his car at the commercial establishment surrounding the station.

"Parking my car at any paid parking space will cost me at least Rs 100 per day. To start with, I'll be parking at commercial establishments where there are no parking charges," he said.

His parking plan, coupled with the metro, is likely to bring down the cost of his daily commute by at least 30%, he predicts.

A few residents from BTM Layout are planning to carpool to the metro station. "Luckily, two of my neighbours and my work schedules are pretty much similar. So we always planned to carpool to the metro ever since we heard about the Yellow Line opening. But since there is no car parking, we're planning to park in a residential lane close by. We're also on the lookout for a pay-and-park place," said 24-year-old Shrishti.