Private buses may get space to park at BEST depots

The idea is to use BEST bus depots, which lie empty through the day, as parking lots for school buses and private buses.

Can vacant BEST bus depots be used as parking lots for private buses? After exploring an idea to create parking spaces inside private housing societies, the newly-formed Mumbai Parking Authority, is looking at more ways to create parking space in cramped Mumbai, and clear roads of illegally parked vehicles.

Aerial view of Oshiwara in Mumbai. The authority is looking at 30 to 40 depots across the city that can accommodate up to 3,000 vehicles. (Pratham Gokhale/HT Photo)

The idea is to use BEST bus depots, which lie empty through the day, as parking lots for school buses and private buses. These buses are usually parked along the roads, leading to congestion, especially during peak hours in the morning and evening.

The authority is looking at 30 to 40 depots across the city that can accommodate up to 3,000 vehicles. Officials close to the plan said the specifics, such as time-slots, were still being worked out.

“Our team is surveying depots across the city to chalk out a plan to create more parking space for private buses there,” a senior civic official from the parking authority told HT. “The idea is to clear the roads as much as possible and prevent congestion.”

BEST already allows private parking in some of its depots. These include Wadala, Anik, Colaba and Sion.

“A majority of BEST’s depots get vacant early in the morning. Peak hours also start around this time. Moving big buses parked on arterial roads will help unclog them to a large extent,” said the official, adding that the authority is also considering using the depots for cars and bikes. “We are going to have a meeting with BEST officials to finalise these plans soon,” the official said.

The BMC is also looking at vacant land belonging to other government agencies to create more parking spaces for vehicles in the city.