The Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA) has decided to nip the evil, of lack of proper parking space, in the bud by building 10 multistorey parking towers in the city’s commercial hub. RDA is planning to construct the big multi-storey parking plazas on the pattern of those built on Lahore’s Jail Road on public-private partnership basis. Two parking towers each would be constructed in Raja Bazaar and Commercial Market, and one each in Committee Chowk, College Road, Saidpur Road, Murair Chowk, Iqbal Road and Circular Road.
According to sources RDA chairman, Arif Abbasi, had formed a five-member committee comprising RDA directors engineering, architecture, finance, state land and metropolitan and traffic engineering. The committee would enter into negotiations with the RMC for the land for Raja Bazaar parking plaza.
Plan for a 25 storey tower is also in the pipeline. This tower, to be built on an area of 13 Kanals would be located on Murree Road adjacent to Rawalpindi Municipal Library and Liaquat Bagh. First two floors will have offices of RDA and Water and Sanitation Agency (WASA). The rest of the floors will be rented out to multinational companies.
It is pertinent to note here that until now there was a ban on construction of multi-storey buildings in and around the area of Benazir Bhutto Airport. But shifting of the airport to a new place renders the ban obsolete.
