Fewer public carparks offering free Sunday parking

SINGAPORE — The proportion of public carparks offering free parking on Sunday has fallen from about 70 per cent in 2005 and 2010 to about 55 per cent now, Senior Minister of State (National Development) Desmond Lee said in Parliament yesterday.

Responding to a question from Non-Constituency Member of Parliament Leon Perera, Mr Lee said the carparks offering free parking on Sundays include parking facilities operated by the Government and statutory boards such as the Housing and Development Board (HDB), the Urban Redevelopment Authority, and the National Parks Board.

The HDB manages most of the public carpark spaces.

As to why the proportion of carparks with free parking on Sundays has been reduced, Mr Lee noted that agencies have to balance the specific needs and parking demands of the area. “For example, it may not be feasible to have free parking on Sundays in HDB carparks where there is high demand for parking from the local residents,” he said.

Mr Perera also wanted to know if the Government would consider allowing non-HDB carparks to offer free parking on Sundays, since such complimentary parking spaces could be a “possible stimulus to small businesses and heartland businesses”, and in promoting family-bonding activities.

In his response, Mr Lee pointed out that planning for parking charges has to be done at both the micro- and macro levels, both at HDB and non-HDB carpark facilities.

Mr Lee said the authorities want to encourage as much free parking on Sundays as possible for the reasons cited by Mr Perera.

“(But), if you look at carparks at specific areas, you need to manage the demand, and there are different stakeholders that need to use the carparks,” Mr Lee said.

“For example, season-parking ticket holders may find it difficult to find carpark lots at specific areas — we need to make sure that we provide (for) and accommodate them,” he added.