ABSTRACT

PMG- Kesavadasapuram Road has turned to be one of the busiest roads in Thiruvananthapuram city. It is the main connecting page link between the central business district and the main residential areas in Thiruvananthapuram city. The numbers of vehicles are going on increasing at an alarming rate. The commercialization of the area is also happening at a fast rate. The investment on roads and for parking facilities have not kept in pace with these growing traffic leading to congestion and accidents. Though multistoried office complexes and shops are common in Thiruvananthapuram, sufficient parking facilities are not provided according to demand for these buildings.
This study was mainly aimed to find the present parking scenario in the area which included parking demand, parking supply and to suggest suitable solutions to meet the parking problems in the PMG – Kesavadasapuram area.


1. INTRODUCTION
1.1 General
One of the problems created by road traffic is parking. Not only do vehicles require street space to move about, but also do they require space to park where the occupants can be loaded an unloaded. The period over which a car is parked is very great compared with the time it is in motion. The size of average parking space is 14 m2. It is roughly estimated that out of 8760 hours in a year, the car runs on an average for only 400 hours, leaving 8360 hours when it is parked. Every car owner would wish to park the car as closely as possible to his destination so as to minimize his walking. This results in a great demand for parking space in the CBD and other areas where the activities are concentrated. With the growing population of motor vehicles, the problem of parking has assumed serious proportions.
Parking control has become the chief means available to cities all over the world to limit congestion. It is the enforcement of laws and regulations. Illegally parked cars are seen almost everywhere. Traffic congestion is like a malignant disease and due to lack of car parking facilities in the centre of cities, land values tend to fall. The ideal solution would be to rebuild our cities to the requirements of the motor car age. Such proposals may be included in a long term plan. But motor vehicles must be accommodated urgently otherwise the consequences may be very serious resulting in the loss of business and property values.
The provision and citing of car parks should be related to the future traffic flow of the roads that will be carrying traffic to the city or town. The wise sitting of car parks can make it possible to increase the number of cars that can be parked in a city centre, without causing congestion. When considering the adaptation of city centers to accommodate the motor car, the pedestrians must also be considered. While cars are permitted to circulate our city centers, there must be some regulation control which will give the maximum use of the space available. This will be to the advantage of everyone concerned. Adequate planned and organize car parking is essential to the life of our cities. The local authorities must be strong minded on this subject. Car parks are not likely to make big profits as a business house. But adequate car parking is a necessary part of development in a city centre and without it trade cannot prosper.
One of the problems created by road traffic is parking. Not only do vehicles require street space to move about, but also do they require space to park where the occupants can be loaded and unloaded. A systematic study of the parking characteristics and demand and regulatory measures that are possible for controlling parking is of great help to a traffic engineer as well as town planner.

1.2 Ill-effects of Parking

1.2.1 Congestion
One of the serious ill-effects of parking is the loss of street space and the resulting traffic congestions. The capacity of the streets is reduced, the journey speed drops down and the journey time and delay increase. The operational cost of vehicles is thereby increased, causing serious economic loss to the community.

1.2.2 Accidents
The maneuvers associated with parking and unparking are known to cause road accidents. Careless opening of the doors of parked vehicles, moving out of a parked position and bringing a car to he parking location from the mainstream of traffic are some of the common causes of parking accidents.

1.2.3 Obstruction to Fire Fighting Operations
Parked cars obstruct the movement of fire fighting vehicles and greatly impede their operations. They block access to hydrants and access to buildings.




1.2.4 Effect on Environment
Parked vehicles degrade the environment of the town centre. Stopping and starting of vehicles result in noise and fumes. Cars parked into every little available space debase the visual aesthetics and “buildings seems to rise from a plinth of cars”.
In spite of the above ill-effects, parking has to be allowed on the streets or off the streets close to the user’s destination. The well being of the community and the town centre demands that great thought should be bestowed with the parking needs and how best to fulfill them.

1.3 Need for the Study
Vellayambalam-Sasthamangalam is one of the most congested locations in Thiruvananthapuram city. High volume of traffic consisting of both fast and slow moving vehicles is plying through the road. The growth rates are reflected in the growth of traffic volume on the roads, thus leading to congestion and subsequent reduction in speed. So it has become necessary to project the future traffic growth and thereby finding out the requirement of increase in carriage way widths required to carry this traffic. The parking space provided is not sufficient to meet the parking demand. Hence it is necessary to conduct a detailed analysis of the traffic characteristics and parking demand of the area.

1.4 Objectives

The objectives of the study are:

1) To study the parking characteristics in Vellayambalam-Sasthamangalam road and to assess whether the demand is met with.
2) Identification of the problems in traffic and parking in Vellayambalam-Sasthamangalam road
3) To project the present traffic scenario in Vellayambalam-Sasthamangalam road.
4) To improve the parking facilities utilizing the available infrastructure for meeting the parking demand of various categories of vehicles.
5) To smoothen the vehicular traffic flow by conducting relevant traffic studies.

1.5 Scope of the study

The scope of the present study is limited to the prediction of traffic volume and parking demand for the year 2007 for the major roads in Vellayambalam-Sasthamangalam location.


2. LITERATURE REVIES

2.1 Parking Facilities in General and Some Common Terms

First of all, it is desirable to understand clearly the meanings of certain terms associated with parking. These terms and their meanings are given below.
1. Parking Accumulation-The total number of vehicles parked in an area at a specified moment. [Fig 2.1]





Figure 2.1 Parking Accumulation Diagram
2. Parking volume- The number of vehicles parked in a particular area over a given period of time. It is usually measured in vehicles per day.
3. Parking load- The area under the parking accumulation curve during a specified period.
4. Parking duration-The length of time spent in a parking space.
5. Parking index- Percentage of parking bays actually occupied by parked vehicles as compared to the theoretical number available.

Number of bays occupied x 100
Parking index = ------------------------------------------------------------------
Theoretical number of bays available

6. Parking turn-over- Rate of the usage of the available parking space. Thus if there were 10 parking spaces used by 100 vehicles in a period of say 12 hours then the parking turnover would be
100 vehicles per space in a period of 12 hours
= --------
10

In shopping centers, public places and localities with offices, there may be shortage of parking facilities. Proper design of parking facilities is essential in such cases. Parking facilities may be broadly divided into two types:

1. One – street or Kerb Parking
2. Off – street Parking

2.2 On-street or Kerb Parking

In this type of parking vehicles are parked on the kerb which may be designed for parking. Kerb parking is quite convenient for those who could find a suitable space to park their vehicles near to the place they wish to stop, but for others who could not find a parking space it is a problem and often they may have to park their vehicles at a far off place you know and walk done to destination. Unless kerb parking facility has been adequately designed in a dance, it might lead to a lot of inconvenience and congestion due to decreased road capacity.
Angle parking or parallel parking may allowed in the kerb parking. Angle parking mat be at angles 30, 60 or 90 degrees. Angles parking accommodates more vehicles per unit lengh of kerb and maximum vehicles that can be parked are with an angle of 90 degrees. The width of road required for parking and unparking maneuver also is more with angle parking and it increase with the parking angle up to a maximum at 90 degree angle. Angle parking is more convenient for the motorists than parallel parking, but it produces much more obstruction to the through traffic resulting in more accidents than the parallel parking. Out of various angles used in angle parking, 45 degree angle is considered as the best. The various patterns of kerb parking are whoen in figures 2.2(a), 2.2(b), 2.2©, 2.2(d) 2.2(e).


3. PARKING STUDIES
3.1 General
Parking studies usually are prerequisite to developing new or expanded parking programs. The studies should be designed to:
1) Inventory of existing parking space supply and measure current levels of space usage (accumulation and space turn over).
2) Identify salient parking characteristics (duration, purpose, trip destination and walking distances to destination).
3) Qualify demands and needs.
4) Estimate facility capital and operating costs, usage and revenues.

Cost and revenue estimates can then be compared to assess the financial feasibility of an overall parking improvement program. The feasibility study should determine:

1. How many spaces are needed under present conditions?
2. How many spaces will be needed under future conditions?
3. Where should additional spaces be located?
4. What type of patrons will they serve (short or long term) and what are their characteristics?
5. What parking rates are realistic?

3.2 Types of Parking Studies
A parking study may be concerned with an individual trip generator or facility, such as a hospital or office building, or with the entire CBD. It should determine not only where motorists can and do park, but also where they would like to park and how there parking practices affect other transportation facilities. Parking studies provide the data essential to develop programs to meet parking needs.
Full scale, comprehensive parking studies involving extensive data collection through parker interviews and other means, and detailed analysis provide a sound basis for estimating parking usage and determining appropriate actions. Comprehensive study generally considered requisite for estimating parking usage and needs on a block by block basis in large cities. However, parking study costs and complexity can be reduced in smaller cities where a familiarity with the area and its principal parking generators will often permit reliable judgments by using a more limited type of study without parking interviews. A limited parking study may rely on measuring parking usage by hourly accumulation counts of parked vehicles or facility occupancy checks.

3.2.1 Types of Parking Surveys
The types of parking surveys are usually conducted as follows:
1. Parking Space in inventory
2. Parking Usage Survey by Patrol
3. Questionnaire Type Parking Usage Survey
4. Cordon Count

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