Mumbai-based Watchdog Foundation has written to the Airport Authority of India (AAI) complaining about the high car parking charges at the Mumbai Airport. The letter states that the Mumbai International Airport Ltd. managed by the Adani Group is charging very high parking charges forcing cab aggregators and others to park in the vicinity of roads leading to the airports.
CSMIA parking charges
According to the Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) website, the parking charges for 30 min for a 4-wheeler is Rs 160 and if one chooses to make use of premium parking then the charges are Rs 250.
Screengrab from CSMIA website | csmia.adaniairports.com
This is an issue for most of the frequent fliers that drive themselves to the airport as they have to pay a huge amount just for parking their car at the Mumbai airport. The Mumbai International airport charges Rs 1,000 if you park your vehicles at the airport for a day.
The increased cost also affects the fliers that would like to book Ola or Uber because they have to wait in long queues as cabs decline to come to the airport fearing the high parking charges.
The cabs that are willing to pick up customers from the airport instead of waiting at the airport park on roads leading to the airport causing a lot of traffic in the surrounding areas.
The letter states that all the airports under the Airport Authority of India are charging Rs 20 for 30 minutes. It also claims that the Operation Management Development Agreement (OMDA) does not allow such parking charges.
The Watchdog foundation has asked that the Mumbai International airports to reduce the parking charges in accordance with the OMDA.
Parking charges in Delhi and Bangalore
Four-wheeler parking charges at the Bangalore airport for 2 hours is Rs 100, whereas the Delhi Indira Gandhi International airport parking charges for 30 min for private vehicles is Rs 120 and for commercial owners is Rs 200.
Daily parking charges at both the Bangalore and Delhi airport is Rs 600, but the Mumbai airports charge Rs 1,000. This is Rs 400 more than the other airports.
Adani and Uber Tie-up
On Wednesday Uber and the Adani group announced a tie-up that will offer a seamless ride experience to travelers. The statement released by the company states that India's key airports under the Adani group located in Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Guwahati, Lucknow and Jaipur will have dedicated Uber Pick Up zones. The partnership will also give Uber drivers dedicated parking areas and the convenience of cashless payments.
