Higher fines on cards for parking violations

August 14, 2013

PUNE: Parking in no-parking zones or straying into bus rapid transit system (BRTS) lanes in Pimpri Chinchwad may soon attract heavy penalties ranging from Rs 1,000 to Rs 5,000, with a new proposal from the Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) awaiting the nod.

The traffic police and the civic body will share the fine amount equally if the proposal comes through.

The civic administration has tabled the proposal for the city improvement committee’s (CIC) approval. The proposal explains how motorists park their vehicles haphazardly on and along roads, obstructing vehicular

traffic and causing congestion. It states how the traffic police have the right to impose fines on such errant individuals under the Motor Vehicles Act, but the fine amount is significantly low to act as a deterrent for repeat offences.

With rising vehicle numbers, such offences are only expected to increase. The traffic police has been long demanding that the PCMC grant powers to them on the lines of Pune Municipal Corporation, under Section 208 of the Maharashtra Municipal Act, which allows them to impose fines on all vehicles that are parked without authorisation, parked in no-parking areas and are driven in BRTS lanes. The Pune civic body had granted such powers to the traffic police in 2004.

The Pimpri Chinchwad civic general body had approved a resolution in August 2009 to grant powers to the traffic police to take action against only commercial vehicles. The traffic department has been seeking the powers to take action against all types of vehicles. The approval of the city improvement committee, standing committee and general body are necessary to grant such powers to the traffic police.

A PCMC official said that the proposal was kept pending by CIC, since its members have sought more information from the traffic police.

Vikas Patil, president, Paryavaran Sanvardhan Samiti said, “The fine is not a solution for disciplining people; it might increase corruption. The civic body must remove all vehicle repair, washing and selling centres located on pavements. Banks, ATMs and shops facing roads must make adequate parking arrangements for their customers to prevent roadside parking. Basements must be used only for parking vehicles.”

Source-http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/