mid day editorial: Citizens, too, must show some civic sense

The many stories coming out of this newspaper on the chronic parking problem in the city are worrying. There is not a single area in the city and its satellite cousins that does not have illegally encroached footpaths.

From Colaba to Thane and Navi Mumbai, footpaths are uniformly being used as parking areas. In some areas, vehicles are parked right under the noses of the local civic ward offices and police stations.

The situation is untenable for pedestrians, especially senior citizens out on walks or children trying to get to and from school. In so many areas they can be found walking on the road in the middle of traffic because autorickshaws, cars and bikes have taken up precious footpath space. So, who is allowing this? Are the authorities blind to these illegalities or is there no mechanism in place to tackle the issue of parking.

One problem could be that there is no place for them to tow these offenders to. So if parking is an issue, instead of the almost Rs 3,000 crore being slated to be spent on a unnecessary statue in the middle of the sea, the authorities should try and create more affordable parking areas.

While we can blame the authorities for the mess, it is also important for us to look inwards. Why have we become so complacent about breaking the rules? Most of the cars and bikes parked on footpaths belong to people like us. How is it all right to park a car on a footpath, forcing young children on to the roads? Bikes, too, are parked haphazardly, showing absolute unconcern for others who need to use the footpath for the purpose it was built.

Could we act less selfishly, and show some civic sense where possible, instead of always blaming the authorities? It is not always up to the authorities to make the city a livable space.

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