Chennai: Tambaram has expanded rapidly in recent years, driven by real estate growth and IT-related development. However, parking infrastructure has not kept pace.From East Tambaram to Selaiyur and West Tambaram, shoppers and visitors park along busy stretches and outside residential areas, while commercial establishments have increasingly turned public spaces into informal parking lots. This leaves cars lining up on streets around Tambaram’s commercial hubs, eating into road space meant for traffic and pavements meant for pedestrians.Tambaram corporation has no parking policy to regulate these spaces, despite having around 580 roads, including nearly 200 major stretches. Activists say a regulated system could help generate revenue while reducing indiscriminate parking and congestion.During visits to commercial areas in East Tambaram, Selaiyur and West Tambaram, TOI found at least 20 cars parked on the pavements. Along GST Road near Tambaram bus terminus, an extended bus bay is used as a paid parking lot by a private hospital.While major corridors such as GST Road, Velachery-Tambaram Road, Medavakkam Tank Road and Perumbakkam High Road are maintained by the highways department, officials said regulating roadside parking and encroachments within city limits remains the responsibility of the local body.Tambaram corporation commissioner S Balachander said the civic body faced constraints in identifying dedicated land. “We have been organising encroachment clearance drives across major roads, but the corporation does not have proper space to allocate for parking. We are trying to create awareness and regulate parking in areas where public gathering is high,” he said, adding, “The corporation has proposed a ₹12 crore smart road project covering Selaiyur, Camp Road, Rajaji Road and Hasthinapuram, including new pavements, underground cabling and relaid roads.”Urban planner S Naveen said Tambaram should adopt a parking framework rather than treating it as an isolated problem. “Peripheral areas such as Yelahanka in Bengaluru have improved parking management by identifying demand zones, creating off-street parking and regulating on-street spaces. Tambaram should map high-demand commercial areas, fix parking charges based on location and duration, reserve residential streets for residents and penalise encroachments. Revenue from parking should be reinvested in multi-level facilities, footpaths and public transport connectivity,” he said.M Gandhi, president, Pallavaram Residents Welfare Association, said roadside encroachments by eateries and mobile canteens have made the situation worse in several areas. “People stop to buy food and park their vehicles randomly. The traffic police rarely take action,” he said.
