New parking system sparks chaos at Lucknow’s Charbagh Station
On Wednesday night, as soon as the new parking system was implemented at Charbagh station, disputes erupted between the employees and passengers
The new parking system recently introduced at Lucknow’s Charbagh station to manage traffic turned chaotic, with the situation escalating to a scuffle between the parking management and commuters.
On Wednesday night, as soon as the new parking system was implemented at Charbagh station, disputes erupted between the employees and passengers regarding the parking arrangement, and the situation continued throughout Thursday as well.
On Wednesday night, Gomti Nagar resident Naveen Rai had come to drop off his relative, who was to travel to Mumbai on the 12533 Pushpak Express. Since the Pushpak Express departs from Lucknow Junction, he went directly to platform number six by car and paid a ₹60 cab-way fee receipt. After dropping his relative, when he left for Gomti Nagar, some volunteers of parking management stopped him at the boom barrier near the reservation centre of Charbagh and demanded ₹20. When asked for an explanation, they claimed it was a parking charge.
According to Naveen Rai, he showed the cab-way receipt, but the employees stated it was not valid for the parking system. “I even asked the man to show his card, but the employees started misbehaving. About eight employees surrounded me, creating a jam-packed situation,” said Rai, who had to pay the fee in the end.
To recall, starting Wednesday, the NR introduced a new parking system where, instead of multiple operators, parking facilities were handed over to a single operator to manage traffic outside the station and charge a fee for entering the premises, with separate space allocated for all types of vehicles. Commercial vehicles are barred from entering the station without paying a fee.
What is the parking dispute?
Charbagh Railway Station belongs to Northern Railway (NR), while Lucknow Junction Station is under North Eastern Railway (NER). The cab-way coming from Mawaiya falls under the jurisdiction of Lucknow Junction, and its boundary ends before the parcel area near Charbagh Railway Station. The premises of Charbagh Railway Station start from here. If one comes from the cab-way, goes straight through the parcel centre, and exits from the reservation centre in front of Ravindralaya, they will have to pay parking fees at two places: one for the cab-way and one for Charbagh Railway Station parking. Similarly, if one enters from Charbagh in front of Ravindralaya, they will have to exit from the side of Hanuman Temple or come back and go out. If one goes directly from the cab-way side, they will have to pay a toll at both places.