Curb the illegal with more municipal lots
WE can never stop talking, discussing, debating, arguing and complaining about parking in Penang. We can go on about it forever.
I recently wrote about parking problems in Pulau Tikus and the story drew feedback from readers. Their emailed responses were something I did not expect.
It proves that parking is indeed an issue close to the hearts of many Penangites, especially those living and working on the island. It proves that people affected by the problem have opinions to share.
To many, the biggest problem concerning parking is illegal parking, which takes place either because motorists have little choice or they simply do not care about others and the law.
Our readers were very kind to point out issues that I "neglected" to mention in my story.
Thank you for writing.
One reader wrote that from her observations, indiscriminate parking arose mainly because of the inconsiderate attitude of motorists who simply left their vehicles where it was most convenient. Meaning, where they did not have to walk too far to reach their destination.
This reader is right. What she said is what we all know to be true and we may also be guilty of it. We have all done it before, one time or another.
That is the ugly truth, my fellow Penangites. Many of us are just too lazy to walk. If possible, we want to park right in front of where we are going.
Just earlier this week, I was at Sunway Carnival Mall in Seberang Jaya on the mainland. A young woman just parked her big expensive car right at the mall's main entrance, which was a no-parking area, and tried to negotiate with the guard to allow her to leave her vehicle there just for a short while. I swear this is a true story.
A cynical and sarcastic person by nature, I thought: "Now, what makes you so special? Driving such a nice car, surely you can afford to pay the mall's RM1 flat-rate parking fee."
It was about 9.10pm and the municipal council parking lots located right across the road from the mall's entrance were free. (Parking fees there are only collected up to 9pm.) There were also quite a few empty lots available as it was a Monday night.
So, able-bodied people like her, for reasons best known to them, just could not bring themselves to park in a proper lot and pay a small fee, or park about 20 to 30 steps away from where they want to go. In my opinion, something is very wrong with such people.
People can pay monthly fees, which are definitely not RM1 per entry, to gyms so that they can run a mile on a treadmill. But they cannot pay a small parking fee or walk a few extra steps. I am not saying all gym-goers are like that, this is just a metaphor.
Yes, I neglected to mention the people with wrong attitudes who have contributed to Penang's parking and traffic mayhem.
I had wanted to give some people the benefit of the doubt and not just point fingers. Maybe some are really forced to park illegally because of insufficient "legal" parking spaces.
There are such cases too. Try going to the court complexes at Lebuh Light, Dewan Sri Pinang or the Stock Exchange in town on days when hundreds of parking lots in the area are sealed off to accommodate trucks, containers and equipment for a weekend race event. At such times, parking illegally, even if you want to, could be a challenge too.
The attitude of people — what can anyone do about it? Parking illegally has developed into a habit. We certainly have thousands of habitual parking offenders in the state.
The question is, are they penalised enough to motivate them to kick the habit, or at least show respect for others? We know many people neglect to pay parking fines issued by the council and they wait for discounts to pay police summonses. We know most of us suffer from the "catch me if you can" syndrome.
Clamping vehicle tyres, appointing traffic wardens and sending out enforcement units to "crack down" on parking offenders were all measures introduced and used to try solving the problem. Well, the problem has not gone away.
Another reader criticised the authorities for not doing enough. How much is enough? Book or clamp every single vehicle that is parked illegally, to show errant motorists — regardless of who they are — how serious the situation is? I would love to see that happen.
But can that be done? Will it be done? Do we have the manpower? Do we have the will? Do we want to go that far to make thousands of errant motorists unhappy, and become unpopular?
Yet another reader had an interesting incident to share about parking. She wrote in her email that some private open-air car parks were charging rates that were ridiculously high.
She mentioned one parking lot located at the corner of Jalan Penang and Jalan Sri Bahari that charged her friend RM10 after they left the car there to have lunch nearby.
It was after being "slapped" with the expensive parking fee that they realised the car park operator was charging RM4 just for the first hour. She felt that was too much for an open-space parking lot. Personally, I think it is daylight robbery too.
Now, how much is too much to pay for parking on the island, especially for parking in private car parks?
Is RM1 for the first hour and RM1.50 every subsequent hour acceptable? How about RM5 per entry or RM3 for the first three hours and another RM1 every subsequent hour? Is RM10 to park for a whole day all right for Penang island's standard?
Let's say the authorities do get very serious with errant motorists and my "fantasy" of every single vehicle parked illegally getting booked becomes a reality. Even RM10 a day is cheaper than paying a RM30 council fine.
Municipal car parks are still the cheapest, charging 30sen or 40sen for 30 minutes of parking, depending on location. The rates are fair and affordable.
Now, if only there are many more of such parking lots everywhere with the authorities watching motorists like hawks. Maybe then, more people will feel motivated to park legally.
Read more: Curb the illegal with more municipal lots - Northern - New Straits Times http://www.nst.com.my/streets/northern/curb-the-illegal-with-more-municipal-lots-1.17241?mid=54#ixzz1g9Wk8gW3
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