Delhi is set to move towards uniform parking charges and coordinated enforcement after Lieutenant-Governor Taranjit Singh Sandhu directed the city’s civic and transport agencies to work under a common framework to address parking shortages and congestion.
The directions were issued at a meeting with senior officials from the Municipal Corporation of Delhi, the New Delhi Municipal Council, the Delhi Development Authority, the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation and the Delhi Traffic Police, according to a press release from Lok Niwas. The agencies were asked to coordinate the development of new parking facilities and ensure that existing sites are fully utilised.
Mr. Sandhu also directed the MCD, NDMC, DDA and Delhi Police to prepare a proposal for an early framework for a unified parking authority for Delhi. The proposed arrangement is intended to bring agencies responsible for parking provision, regulation and enforcement within a coordinated structure.
Parking charges currently differ across the agencies. The MCD’s base rate for cars is ₹20 an hour, while the NDMC charges ₹50 an hour for on-street parking. DMRC facilities charge ₹30 for parking of up to six hours. The proposed uniform system would address these variations, although the press release did not specify a final common rate or an implementation date.
The Lieutenant-Governor asked officials to conduct joint enforcement drives around existing surface and multi-level parking facilities. The drives will target unauthorised parking and are also expected to improve the use of designated parking sites. Resident welfare associations and market bodies are to be involved in the enforcement efforts.
The scale of the enforcement challenge was reflected in Traffic Police data presented at the meeting. Between January 1 and October 5 this year, officials issued 13.34 lakh challans and 5.54 lakh notices for unauthorised parking. During the same period, 1.24 lakh vehicles were towed.
The MCD currently operates 463 parking sites and plans to add 79 more by December. The DMRC has Park-and-Ride facilities at 127 of its 242 Delhi-NCR stations, with capacity for nearly 1.35 lakh vehicles. The figures place existing parking capacity alongside a continuing enforcement burden across roads, markets, residential areas and transport hubs.
The meeting also examined technology-based parking services. Agencies were asked to explore FASTag-based payments, app-based real-time information on parking availability and automated sensor ticketing. Officials were further directed to examine dedicated electric-vehicle charging points at public parking facilities and the integration of MCD and NDMC parking data with navigation platforms.
The directions come as Delhi’s parking management remains divided among several authorities, with different tariffs, facilities and enforcement responsibilities. The agencies have been tasked with preparing the unified parking authority proposal and examining the technology and infrastructure measures outlined at the meeting.
