New Delhi: More than six years after Delhi’s parking policy was notified, Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) has yet to take concrete steps to implement the Parking Area Management Plans (PAMPs).The initiative was aimed at reducing disputes over parking in residential areas, creating designated parking spaces for residents and visitors, and ensuring access for emergency vehicles by decongesting areas and keeping certain roads free of parked vehicles — as mandated by Supreme Court directions.However, implementation on the ground has remained patchy.The corporation receives a share of one-time road tax collected from vehicle registrations — from 2022 to date, Rs 605.8 crore has been transferred to MCD under this head — but little of the amount has visibly been used for parking reforms. While some money has reportedly been used for interlocking tile work and a multi-level parking lot in Subhash Nagar, there is little clarity on utilisation of the rest of the funds.MCD’s last parking survey was in Nizamuddin East in Feb 2025. The aim was to identify grey areas and prepare a management plan. “Half of the parking sites were found to be occupied and there was no space in front of main entry/exit points, walkways, islands or footpaths,” according to the survey submitted to Delhi govt’s transport department. “While service lanes and back lanes were used for parking vehicles, there was little space left for manoeuvring emergency-service vehicles. At places, buses were found parked outside schools, while the other side of such roads was occupied by cabs,” it noted.Sources said considering the area’s proximity to Humayun’s Tomb and its high tourist footfall, a detailed parking plan was drawn up, and a site was identified outside the colony to decongest the roads.Prior to that, till 2021, parking plans were prepared for 17 localities, including Gulmohar Park, Neeti Bagh, Anand Lok, Aurobindo Marg (IIT to AIIMS stretch), Geetanjali Enclave, Green Park Extension, Kailash Colony, Kailash Hills, Punjabi Bagh banquet hall area, Malviya Nagar, Panchsheel Enclave, Safdarjung Development Area and Siddharth Extension Pocket-B. However, the majority of these plans didn’t get approvals from Delhi govt and were never implemented.A senior govt official confirmed that MCD had submitted plans for these 17 localities and they were discussed in a sub-committee headed by the commissioner, transport department. “After scrutiny, four were approved and the remaining 13 were sent to School of Planning and Architect (SPA), which is part of our technical committee, before they were to be forwarded to the minister concerned for the final nod. However, SPA made certain observations, and the civic body was supposed to update these plans accordingly. We are still awaiting its response,” said the official, adding that other civic bodies, including DDA, also need to prepare parking area management plans. NDMC is in the process of making such plans.Only two areas — Lajpat Nagar-III and Central Market — had implemented parking plans before the unification of the civic bodies. Officials said compliance with norms remains poor at Lajpat Nagar-III due to disagreement among residents and stakeholders.The erstwhile north and east corporations earmarked parking space in the busy Kamla Nagar and Krishna Nagar markets to decongest them, but those plans could be sustained for only a few weeks.Following meetings in 2025, Delhi govt suggested revisiting the PAMPs, taking into account changing ground realities over time, according to sources. When contacted, MCD refused to provide an update on the matter.In Sept 2019, Delhi govt notified the parking reforms in the form of the Delhi Maintenance and Management of Parking Places Rules, 2019, commonly known as the parking policy.“The PAMPs were aimed at improving the availability of on-street and off-street parking in residential areas and utilising road space for the convenience of users, while giving priority to pedestrians, cyclists, emergency vehicles and vending zones. It also recommended a dynamic pricing mechanism for parking during peak and non-peak hours,” an official said.Civic agencies were also required to consider developing open areas, other than designated green zones or parks near colonies, as paid parking lots. The policy recommended prohibiting parking on footpaths and towing illegally parked vehicles.
