DDA and MCD to open 281 new parking lots in Delhi with 98 sites planned for Dwarka
The Delhi Development Authority (DDA) and the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) are set to operationalise 281 new surface parking lots across the city, including 98 designated sites in the Dwarka zone, in an effort to reduce traffic congestion and air pollution. The initiative, monitored by the central government and the Prime Minister’s Office, will add approximately 75,000 equivalent car spaces (ECS), marking a 46 percent increase in Delhi's existing parking capacity.
Under the phased action plan, the DDA has set a target of operationalising 50 parking lots by August, with the remaining 182 slated to be functional by November 2026. Registration for the e-auction of 232 vacant DDA plots, which will be temporarily used as surface parking sites on a licence fee basis, began on Thursday.
Out of the 232 DDA sites identified for the project, the Dwarka zone contains the highest allocation with 98 plots. The remaining plots are distributed across other areas, with 53 in the North zone, 30 in Rohini, 28 in the East zone, and 23 in the South zone.
Simultaneously, the MCD has been directed to establish 49 surface parking sites by August, which will contribute an additional 3,000 ECS of parking space. The corporation has also submitted a long-term plan to construct 12 multilevel parking lots to accommodate 6,229 vehicles, though officials noted this larger project is expected to take several years to execute.
Currently, Delhi has 668 surface parking lots with a total capacity of 160,463 ECS, alongside 43 covered units that accommodate 53,922 vehicles. Officials stated that utilising vacant land parcels will help reduce local encroachments and improve accessibility in commercial hubs and densely populated residential areas.
The traffic decongestion and parking augmentation plan was reviewed by the Prime Minister’s Office earlier this month. While Delhi has had a roadmap in place since the notification of the Delhi Maintenance and Management of Parking Places Rules in September 2019, key features of that policy are yet to be fully implemented.
