LUCKNOW: The Lucknow Municipal Corporation (LMC) will soon start using wheel jammers instead of towing vehicles by cranes to stop haphazard parking in the city.
A pilot project will start in Hazratganj and adjoining areas in a month in this regard and will be later extended to all major crossings, especially those where traffic jams are frequent.
The decision to use jammers has been taken to avoid controversies during crane towing operations as many times citizens had complained that the company tasked with towing was picking up vehicles that were not violating rules besides misbehaviour by the crane drivers.
On February 13, a video of a crane towing a car with a man on the driving seat and shouting at the crane driver to stop, had gone viral following which towing had been stopped.
Municipal commissioner Ajay Kumar Dwivedi, in an exclusive talk with TOI, said, “The towing of vehicles had been stopped after the February 13 incident, but people are still parking their vehicles in no-parking zones. So, now, we decided to jam the wheels of vehicles found in no parking. Only those vehicles found blocking traffic and causing jams would be towed.”
The owner will have to pay a penalty at the nearby LMC parking where a counter will be installed for the purpose to get the jammer removed from the wheels. The use of wheel jammers will also be cost-effective in comparison to operating cranes, he added.
“Our staff would place a slip on the jammed vehicle. This slip will contain details like the reason why the vehicle is jammed, the fine amount and location of the counter where the penalty can be paid to get it removed,” he added.
Owner would be given a digital receipt and the amount paid would reflect on the LMC database.
“Discussions on the implementation of this strategy and adaptations needed have been held and it will be launched in Hazratganj in a month” Dwivedi added.
When asked whether additional staff will be hired for deployment on the counters and collecting fines, the commissioner said, “Employees already operating our parking lots would do this work also. There is no need to hire extra staff.”
