Illegal parking near shopping malls in Odisha's Sambalpur compounds traffic woes

Currently, there are eight malls and a few small market complexes on a stretch of two km between Ainthapali to Budharaja.
Vehicles parked illegally on a road in front of a shopping mall l Express
Vehicles parked illegally on a road in front of a shopping mall l Express

SAMBALPUR: Unauthorised parking on roads in front of shopping malls has compounded the traffic woes of residents of Sambalpur. In the last few months, a number of shopping centres and malls have mushroomed in the city, three of which have opened recently.

Most of these malls lack adequate parking space and are unable to accommodate the huge number of vehicles of shoppers flocking to these places. Most of the vehicles are illegally parked on roads, leading to traffic jams and causing inconvenience to daily commuters.

Currently, there are eight malls and a few small market complexes on a stretch of two km between Ainthapali to Budharaja. While only two of these malls have basement parking facility, shoppers prefer to park their vehicles outside by encroaching the entire footpath. Security deployed at these two malls said people usually are reluctant to park their vehicles in the basement.

The illegal parking nuisance assumes alarming proportions during the weekends when there is a manifold rise in flow of visitors to these malls. Apart from taking over the footpaths, vehicles can be seen parked on roads, thereby making them narrower for traffic. Sources said the traffic situation has worsened after the opening of new malls this year.

Ruchika Panigrahi, a resident living near a recently-opened mall besides Budharaja over-bridge, said, “Since the shopping centre is located adjacent to the U-turn near the bridge, traffic comes to a standstill frequently due to the parking menace. Besides on Sundays, people park their two-wheelers on both sides of the road.”

Some traffic personnel were deployed at the place during the first few days after the mall opened. Now, not a single cop is present to restrict people from parking on the road, she added.Similar situation prevails in VSS Marg and Golebazar areas where a number of shopping complexes are located adjacent to the main roads.

Contacted, Additional SP PK Mohapatra said, “Police are trying their best to control traffic near the malls. We are planning to take more stringent measures to prevent unauthorised parking.”

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