A model of a high-rise public parking lot expected to be built in HCM City’s downtown area to meet the severe shortage of parking space. — Photo www.baogiaothong.vn

HCM CITY — HCM City plans to pilot a prefabricated high-rise public parking lot on Lê Lai Street, a move that is expected to help solve the city’s lack of parking space in the downtown area.

The city’s Department of Transport has asked the Public Transport Management and Operation Centre to prepare a pilot plan to build a high-rise public parking lot that can park 48 cars and 80 motorbikes next to the 23 September Park in District 1.

The downtown area attracts many visitors coming for commercial services and entertainment but suffers from a severe shortage of parking space.

According to the department, the cost of building prefabricated parking lots is less than building on site and underground lots.

These parking lots use modern technologies combined with intelligent software, helping to optimise the control of vehicles in and out, and effective operation management.

It is also easy to enlarge the parking lot by assembling more blocks together, and dismantle and relocate them when needed, it said.

If the trial proves to be effective, two more high-rise public parking lots will be built in District 5 and 8.

Previously, private investors suggested the city should build precast high-rise parking lots which have proved efficient, such as those on Chế Lan Viên Street in Tân Phú District, which can accommodate 2,800 cars and motorbikes, Cô Giang Street in District 1 with space for 2,000 vehicles, and at Tân Sơn Nhất airport with space for 10,000 vehicles.

But this was not approved by the city’s administration because of issues related to congestion and reduced public space in the inner city.

To mitigate the shortage of parking spaces, since 2018, the city allowed cars to be parked on streets in several areas, including District 1, and collected fees, but this has not met demand.

The city previously aimed to build four underground lots at Lê Văn Tám Park, Tao Đàn Park, Trống Đồng Stage, and Hoa Lư Stadium, all in District 1, with a total capacity of 6,300 cars and 4,000 motorbikes, but these plans have remained on paper for more than ten years. — VNS