Delhi cabbies may have to give proof of parking space to get driving permit

The Delhi government is thinking of introducing a policy that will require taxi drivers to submit proof of parking space before being issued permits.

The Delhi government, in a bid to ease the parking woes of the city, is considering the idea of first seeking proof of parking space from taxi owners before issuing permits.

ccording to figures from the transport department, the number of cabs, especially those under aggregators like Ola and Uber, has increased by around 20,000 in the past 3-4 months. (Sonu Mehta/HT FILE)

The idea was mooted after Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal expressed concern over the increasing number of cabs in the city during a recent meeting o the city’s parking policy. According to figures available with the transport department, the number of cabs, especially those under aggregators like Ola and Uber, has increased by around 20,000 in the past 4-5 months.

“We plan to come up with a policy where before issuing permits to taxi drivers they will be asked to submit proof of space to park cars. A separate policy will have to be made for that,” a government official said.

At present, there are no designated parking places for cabs which have crossed the 1.5 lakh mark in Delhi-NCR. The rapid surge in their number has made roads more chaotic as drivers often take a nap or wait for customers by parking cars on busy roads. This adds to the perennial problem of traffic congestion in the city.

At present, there is no rule asking owners of taxis to submit proof of parking space before permits are issued to them under the City Taxi Scheme, 2015. “The government is already preparing a City Taxi Scheme, 2017 and if the rule gets all approvals then it would also be included in the new scheme,” the official added.

When not on duty, most of taxis are parked in residential colonies that has become an issue for colony residents. “A large number of cabs end up blocking the narrow 8-12 feet wide streets in unauthorized colonies as majority of drivers live in such localities. They prefer to park their cars right in front of their houses. A number of RWAs have complained about the menace of cabs being parked in their colonies overnight,” said a official in the transport department.

The department said areas where such parking was rampant included places like Uttam Nagar, Najafgarh, Shahdara, Sangam Vihar, Rohini and Dwarka. But it also expressed its inability to take any action right away as there is “no policy in this regard as of now.”

The L-G, while reviewing the draft parking policy presented by Delhi transport commissioner on Wednesday, also directed that differential pricing be introduced depending upon the area and demand as one of the rules. Under the ‘No Tolerance Zone’ move, under which parking or even halting would be prohibited, Baijal directed the traffic police and local bodies to ensure strict enforcement to maintain road discipline, parking and vehicle movement on particular road stretches.