Mysore hits a parking block

Emerging from the shadows of big brother Bangalore, Mysore is now witnessing a flurry of activities. The last couple of years have put the city on the fast lane with investments coming in a torrent. But this high speed growth has also thrown up many challenges, including parking.

The three-decade-old Devaraj Urs Road has emerged as the busiest commercial hub, sidelining Sayaji Rao Road from the top spot. Named in honour of the Baroda Maharaja Sayaji Rao Gaekwad to mark his visit during the Wodeyar's rule, Sayaji Rao Road was known as a wide road 3-4 decades ago.

It was spacious and clean, ideal for leisurely shopping in the sprawling Devaraja Market to buy vegetables and fruits.

Both tourists and locals thronged the place in thousands to witness the Dasara procession, as they do today. Today, the thoroughfare has become overcrowded like many leading roads in the city.

The credit for laying out a well-planned city with abundant public facilities goes to the rulers of Mysore. These facilities continue to serve even today for the million-odd people.

But, the subsequent lack of vision or dynamism to meet the future needs of the city, in keeping with its population growth, has led the city to face a number of bottlenecks making these facilities inadequate for the present population and demanding newer facilities.

"A pressing issue today is that of traffic management. The number of cars and two-wheelers is bound to increase the pressure further. The overall number of registered vehicles stood at 3,76,749 as of July-end," said regional transport office sources.

Rhe Urs Road is facing the brunt. Parking space comes at premium, particularly during the morning rush hours or during the shopping hours in the evening.

The situation has worsened in the last one year with the footpaths on Dewan's Road, Bidaram Krishnappa Road and Shivarampet becoming parking space. It is equally bad for parking two-wheelers particularly during the morning banking hours, as a number of leading banks have branches here.

With the number of IT units, malls and commercial ventures spreading wings in the city, the traffic issue is bound to worsen in the next few years.

The civic and police authorities are working on tackling the issue. Under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Reconstruction Mission, plans are being drafted to improve the civic and other amenities, including the traffic situation.

The Mysore Urban Development Authority has proposed four multiple parking structures in the different busy localities, one of them being the open grounds which houses the Nallappa Thana Police Station, adjacent the Devaraj Urs Road.