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Sharjah: Tenants in Sharjah can reserve their own parking spaces by paying Dh7,000 a year, said a senior Sharjah municipality official on Monday.
Abdul Rahman Ahmad Al Mahmoud, Head of Transport and Freight department at Sharjah Municipality, said: "The reserved parking spaces have been implemented in the crowded areas of the city, including parts of Al Sheyoukh, Jamal Abdul Nasser Road, Buheira Corniche, and the industrial areas."
He said more than 70 reserved parking spaces have been allocated so far, and that there are plans to introduce more such spaces in the coming future.
Remote control
These reserved parking spaces have drawn attention from bystanders as a small metal sign no more than half a metre is placed in the sfpace, preventing motorists from driving over it.
"The reserved parking space is operated by remote control, and the owners can only use it in the area that was designated to them by the municipality," said Al Mahmoud when asked whether users can take advantage of the remote control and unlock parking spaces in all areas.
"When a motorist wants to use his reserved parking space all he has to do is to click on his remote and the sign board of his reserved parking goes down flat." he added.
The same technique is applied when the motorist takes his car out of the parking space: the sign comes up.
He explained that tenants can reserve parking spaces by writing a letter to Sharjah Municipality, which will then be approved only after inspectors conduct a survey in the requested area.
"The reserved parking spaces are granted to businesses and employees working at banks and government buildings; however, residents can also apply for spaces if they do not have a designated parking lot behind their building," said Al Mahmoud. Nevertheless, not all residents welcomed the introduction of the reserved parking spaces because they said it unnecessarily occupies free spaces.
"I do not see the point of having reserved parking spaces that are not used all the time. On the several occasions that I had to visit my bank in Al Sheyoukh, it was very difficult to find an empty parking lot but it was more upsetting to see all those unused reserved parking spaces. It shows that the people do not really need them," said Ala'a Saleh.
Some other residents also expressed displeasure.
"There is already a shortage of parking spaces in Sharjah. I understand the paid parking metre system which gives every one to use the parking spaces but reserving a parking space for just one customer does not make sense. It will further aggravate the parking problem in the emirate," said Hashim Malek, a resident.
Your comments
In Abushagara, the area is totally occupied by used cars. They have parked the cars in between the buildings, which is marked for the tenants. Also they have parked their cars wherever possible, and due to this, entering and exiting the Abushagara area is a cumbersome process. Unless they move from this place, it is very difficult to regulate the parking space in and around Sharjah.
PSV
Sharjah,UAE
Posted: April 01, 2008, 11:36
I live in Abu Shagara, and this area is now completely filled by used car showrooms with no parking spaces for residents. I think this will only help the used car owners to reserve their parking and fill up the available free spaces all the time.
Surej
Sharjah,UAE
Posted: April 01, 2008, 09:49
Dh7000 for reserved parking is too much, not everybody can afford it. Sharjah Municipality should reduce the rate then people can afford it.
John
Sharjah,UAE
Posted: April 01, 2008, 09:44
I appreciate the efforts taken by the authorities, but only highly paid people can afford this amount. Everybody knows that the cost of living is going up day by day, but the salary is still the same. The employers do not seem to understand this. Secondly, in the Abu Shagara Area, which has so many residential buildings, there is absolutely no place for parking due to second-hand car sales. Residents in this area, I am sure, are finding it difficult to even take their cars out at the time of an emergency.
Mabel
Sharjah,UAE
Posted: April 01, 2008, 09:04
I witnessed such reserved parking spaces in other countries, with different means to implement it. It is a good idea if only applied for employees in sensitive positions, those who should not worry about finding a parking space when arriving at the workplace.
Ala'a
Ajman,UAE
Posted: April 01, 2008, 08:56
It is not fair to reserve some spaces for a particular person. If everyone who can pay Dh7000 per year reserves the spaces, what will the others do?
George
Sharjah,UAE
Posted: April 01, 2008, 08:51
I always go to Sharjah on the weekends. I totally agree to the comments made by some of the residents that Sharjah Municipality should plan to make multi-level car parking in heavily congested areas, rather than giving reserved parking which is not always used. It is quite annoying to see empty spaces in the heavily congested areas when you cannot find parking for hours.
Zaki
Ras Al Khaimah,UAE
Posted: April 01, 2008, 08:49
Sometime back, even Abu Dhabi had reserved parking for around Dh3500 per year, and we could see a lot of parking taken up by this reservation system, but now all of them have vanished.
Bilal
Abu Dhabi,UAE
Posted: April 01, 2008, 08:11
In Sharjah, the roads are getting smaller due to insufficient parking space and there are too many car rental shops with their cars parked on the street. The municipality should take action on this as well.
RC
Sharjah,UAE
Posted: April 01, 2008, 08:08
Not only in Sharjah, within all emirates this should be implemented, and the concerned municipalities should construct multi-storey parking lots for tenants and residents.
Mohammad
Dubai,UAE
Posted: April 01, 2008, 08:01
I think it is a shame ... Instead of solving the parking problem, which is mainly caused by giving licenses to new buildings without securing parking, a huge amount of money is required to secure a parking that is not even used most of the time.
Rania
Sharjah,UAE
Posted: April 01, 2008, 07:18
This is a great system, once people get used to it, it will operate smoothly.
Shivan
New York,USA
Posted: April 01, 2008, 07:14
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