Many walkways in Kochi now parking strips

Time of India

25-06-2025

Kochi: With limited parking available in Kochi—both in residential complexes and private homes—many residents are forced to park their cars on roadsides adjacent to their homes.
This growing trend is leading to multiple issues, ranging from traffic congestion to pedestrian safety concerns.
"Parking on footpaths has become a major problem in many areas. Some residents leave their cars for days at a time. Many residents own more than one vehicle, but often lack sufficient parking space to accommodate even a single one," said Antony Kureethra, opposition leader, Kochi Corporation and councillor from Fort Kochi.
On roads like Thamaraparambu Road, vehicles are often parked on both sides, causing severe traffic bottlenecks. "This even hampers the movement of emergency vehicles such as ambulances," Kureethra added.
A particularly glaring example is Herschel's Walkway—a 1.5km stretch along Herschel Road in Fort Kochi—now almost entirely occupied by parked cars. "The tourism department spent Rs 50 lakh to develop this walkway with granite-paved footpaths and over 50 streetlights.
Yet, pedestrians are forced to walk on the road," said KJ Sohan, former mayor of Kochi.
Many of these vehicles are rarely used and often covered with tarpaulins. "Owners who have multiple vehicles don't use all of them regularly. This neglect has unexpected consequences—recently, a python entered one of the parked cars. The owner had to call in snake catchers," Sohan added.
The lack of regulation and monitoring has also led to some concerning incidents.
On April 24, an elderly man was found dead inside a parked car on Herschel's Walkway. "The vehicle had been parked there for days. The man, believed to have mental health issues, entered the car unnoticed. When discovered, his body was already decomposing. We're still waiting for the post-mortem report," said Kureethra.
As a fallout of the parking crisis, antisocial elements have also begun using these unattended vehicles as hideouts.
"It's not uncommon to find empty liquor bottles in parked cars," Sohan said.
The scarcity of adequate parking within many residential premises is leading vehicle owners to park on city roadsides, police say. "We only intervene if their parking causes obstruction," a senior Kochi traffic cop said.
Police acknowledge the issue but face limitations. "As long as the vehicles are not obstructing traffic, we don't intervene," said a senior traffic officer.