Hyderabad, Aug.14 (NSS): The Hyderabad Metro has come as a big shock to the commuters of the State capital. It has decided to withdraw the free parking at parking facility of vehicles at Nagole Metro station.
In this regard, the authorities have set up a metro prepaid parking board from Wednesday to make sure that fixed cash is paid for the parking of vehicles. If you park a two-wheeler for two hours, you will have to pay Rs 10 and for eight hours, you will have to pay Rs 25. If you have to park for 12 hours, you will have to pay Rs 40. The commuters protested at the Nagole metro station against the decision of the authorities.
The metro commuters who had gone to park this morning were shocked to see the prepaid parking board. Following this, everyone protested at the Nagole metro station. They also demanded free parking facility as usual. “We are staying in Nagole and LB Nagar areas as we are not able to stay in Jubilee Hills and Madhapur areas with meagre salaries and the new rules have been brought in by the Metro rail authorities to pay additional parking fees other than the fare,” a commuter said. Those going to places like Jubilee Hills will have to pay Rs 40 per day i.e. Rs 1,200 per month, which will put a financial burden on their families, another commuter said. The commuters have demanded that this provision, which is causing inconvenience to small employees, should be removed and free services should be provided as usual.
Similarly, if a car is parked for two hours, the car driver will have to pay Rs 30, if it is parked for 8 hours, it will be Rs 75 and if it is parked for 12 hours, the driver has to pay Rs 120 as per the new rules. The Metro authorities have also allowed monthly passes to be issued with a discount of 40 per cent. Despite collecting so much cash, the authorities are not ensuring the safety of the vehicles. The commuters also expressed their anger over the authorities putting up a board stating that they have nothing to do with the thefts, damage or loss of goods.
Around 4-5 lakh people travel daily in the Hyderabad Metro. Many people come to the metro station, which is near their home on their own vehicles and from there catch the metro rail. The commuters need to download the app to pay the prepaid parking fee. However, many allege that there are difficulties in downloading it. They are also asking what is the point of paying the parking fees if the parking area is bad and even the safety of the vehicles are not guaranteed.
