Web-based parking to help track cars

“By computerised parking and linking the system to the BMC’s server,we will be able to track the movement of vehicles in the city. This system will help during terror attacks or vehicle thefts,” said Additional Municipal Commissioner Aseem Gupta.

Officials said during terror strikes or car thefts,the police and agencies are not able to trace vehicles or their movements,but with a centralised data base of all pay-and-park vehicles being recorded and stored by the civic administration,tracking cars and their owners will be easier.

Gupta said the surveillance system will be further strengthened as the police’s plan to instal CCTV cameras across the city will also help track movement of vehicles. “One can track the time of a vehicle being parked and the direction in which it went afterwards. These little details will help all security agencies in the city,” said Gupta.

While initially the web-based computerised parking will be implemented in BMC’s pay-and-park facilities,the agency is planning to bring similar facilities,including parking lots in malls,multiplexes,hospitals and other public places,under the computerised parking system.

The new web-based parking is also aimed at reducing parking woes in the city. Under the next phase of the plan,the BMC is planning to include a system wherein one can book parking space in additional lanes categorised or listed as parking areas,especially near residential societies in need of parking.

“Many residential areas do not have adequate parking space and we can categorise certain lanes near these areas as residential parking and allow residents to park their vehicles in listed places,which will also be recorded in our database,” said an official. “Once the backbone of the system is in place,we will add the facility of pre-booking parking space online like one books movie tickets in advance,” Gupta added.

The BMC has shortlisted two companies for the web-based parking contracts and hopes to begin the project next year.