Shoppers stranded as MLCP closes
The 40crore facility, inaugurated in 2021 by the then chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswami, had been operated by a private firm whose contract ended recently. It was later handed over to another company on a temporary basis. "They ran it for a year, and now their term has also ended. So from Saturday, the shutters were down. As it's Aadi, there were many shoppers," said a Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) official.
A lone security guard at the site placed red barricades at the entrance and was seen responding to confused and angry motorists.
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"I came in the afternoon expecting to find space, but on-road parking was full and the MLCP was closed. I had to park on Masilamani Road, but the traffic police locked my vehicle as it was a no-parking zone," said K Jagadeesan from Manapakkam.
Senthamarai Kumaresan from Vadapalani, who came on her two-wheeler, was also turned away. "GCC should have at least issued a closure notice. During Aadi, footfall is high in T Nagar, yet the civic body has shut down the MLCP.
Some temporary arrangements should be made immediately," she said.
The MLCP can accommodate 222 cars and 513 two-wheelers, with three car lifts and one bike lift. While bikes are parked in the basement and terrace, cars are accommodated across six floors each floor holding 37 cars. However, two of the three car elevators have been dysfunctional for months and remain unrepaired. For the past eight months, the temporary operator had been offering free parking for the first three hours.
"But with only one working elevator, queues were long, and car owners avoided the facility. As a result, most bylanes around Pondy Bazaar have turned into illegal parking zones," said V Manikandan of West Mambalam.
GCC commissioner J Kumaragurubaran said a new contractor will be appointed soon. "We will be floating the RFP shortly," he said.
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