Limited city parking space hinder business, say motorists

Car owners in Kigali have raised concerns over the limited parking space, especially around commercial areas and office premises.Athanase Kabera, who owns a shop at the busy Kisementi shopping area in Gasabo District, said parking space was limited and they survive on first-come-first-served basis, not only for customers, but for business owners as well. This, he said, has compelled him to always leave his car at home.“It is difficult to find a parking spot here and the number of cars keeps on increasing,” Kabera said.Authorities in the City of Kigali say they are aware of the problem and are working on finding a solution.Bruno Rangira, the director of communication in the City of Kigali, said no new building plan will be approved without packing space.“Since we implemented the City master plan in 2008, no one can get a construction permit without showing a parking facility on the architectural design of a commercial building,” Rangira said.He added on that the City had tried to reform the public transport system and also urged real estate developers to venture into the parking business.Urging developersPeter Lutwama, the managing director of Plut Properties, said parking remains a major problem, which, unfortunately, leads some people into being fined by Traffic Police for illegal parking.He said commercial complex developers should consider having underground parking because it saves space.According to the National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda’s semantic report on utilities and amenities, Kigali had a population of 913,000 people in 2005, which shot to 1,580,000 in 2010. Some 4.6 per cent of households in 2005 had cars and this shot up to 6.1 per cent in 2010.To secure a parking space in downtown Kigali, one has to pay Rwf100 per hour at the few public parking lots available in places like Union Trading Centre.