Fees for 11 public car parks to increase in December

The government will update the fees for the use of public parking spaces in 11 car parks, according to an announcement published on Saturday in the Official Gazette.
The cost of a monthly pass for a reserved parking spot will rise to MOP2,300 and the cost of a monthly pass without a reserved spot will come to MOP1,600. The monthly pass for two-wheel vehicles will now cost MOP400.
Another of the changes includes the differentiation of parking fees according to the time of day. Under this scheme, the hourly fee for the use of parking spaces for passenger cars will rise to MOP6 per hour during the day time (from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.) and MOP3 per hour during the night (from 8 p.m. to 8 a.m. the next day). For two-wheel vehicles, parking during the day will cost MOP2 per hour and MOP1 per hour through the night. The new fees will come into effect on December 1.
The measure was justified on the grounds that public parking fees hadn’t been updated “for many years,” along with the reality of “growing operating costs.” According to the Transport Bureau (DSAT), the changes were made in “reference to the fees for parking in other territories”. The Bureau also indicated that this is only phase one of four in a plan to rationalize the use of public parking spaces in order to “fully maximize public resources.”
This initial phase will affect 11 parking lots located in the Central and NAPE areas: Nam Van (Pak Wu), Garden of Arts, Pak Lok (Ferry Terminal), Alameda Dr. Carlos d’Assumpcao, Pak Lek, Pak Leng, Pak Tou (ZAPE 15), Friendship Square, Ferreira do Amaral Square, Ho Yin Garden and the Malacca Street parking lot.
As for the other public car parks, their fees will be updated gradually during next year. In addition to theparking fee increase, and its aim to control the growth of the number of vehicles, the government will also soon update the road taxes as well as implementing other inhibiting measures as part of an action plan for the sustainable management of private vehicles.  RM