CAR-PARKING IN HOUSING BOARD ESTATES

Mr Teo Chong Tee asked the Minister for National Development whether the Housing and Development Board can set aside some parking lots in the seasonal car parks for visitors, who otherwise would have to find a coupon parking area some distance away, and also introduce a system whereby a visitor who has to make a short call can be given a slip permitting him free parking for five to ten minutes, obviating the need for him to display a parking coupon.

The Minister for National Development (Mr Teh Cheang Wan): Mr Speaker, Sir, since the introduction of coupon parking in November 1980, the HDB has been converting its season car parks to include short-term parking as well. This conversion is being implemented in stages.

The HDB has always been granting motorists five minutes of free parking. In the past, motorists who needed to make short calls were given advice slips by parking attendants, permitting them free parking for five minutes. With the implementation of coupon parking, the five minutes' grace period is still being given to motorists. HDB enforcement officers making their rounds will take note of vehicles without coupons and allow them five minutes free parking before issuing notices.

Mr Teo Chong Tee (Changi): Sir, I wonder whether five minutes is sufficient for a driver to park his car at a parking lot, wait for the lift to go up to one of the floors, and then finally comes down. When he comes down, of course, he finds that he has already got a notice on his car for parking without a parking coupon. I think this is not fair to the motorists. I wonder whether the Hon. Minister could persuade the HDB parking authorities to have more attendants around to issue these notices to extend the grace period from five minutes to 10, or maybe 15 minutes.

Mr Teh Cheang Wan: Mr Speaker, Sir, if we have to employ more parking attendants, this would defeat the purpose of coupon parking. The five-minute grace period is for those who need only five minutes, for example, to go into the car park to drop somebody or to pick up someone. But if the person needs to go into the flat and spend a few minutes to attend to his business or wait for somebody, then in that case he will have to pay for the parking.

Mr Eugene Yap Giau Cheng (Mountbatten): Mr Speaker, Sir, can I just come back to season car parking ticket? For HDB residents who have got parents living in HDB flats in other HDB housing estates, can we not give them the privilege of using their season car parking ticket in other housing estates? This will probably save the cost of printing so many parking coupons. I wonder how much the Minister spends in printing these coupons.

The other question is whether the Minister could give people a chance to use coupons if they find that it is too costly to use the season ticket? As for me, I do not use the season ticket. But if I have to go to car parks that require it, then I can use coupons. Maybe my case is not a good example, but other people may need the opportunity to use coupons.

Mr Teh Cheang Wan: Sir, our present system allows those who require long-term parking to buy monthly parking tickets. For those who require short-term parking, they can use coupons. I think this is a more satisfactory arrangement. Let them decide for themselves which system suits them best. If they find that they have to visit the place very often, then they may opt to pay $15 for a monthly parking ticket. If they have to visit the place only for a short while at irregular intervals, then in that case it is cheaper for them to use coupons.

Mr Eric Cheong Yuen Chee (Toa Payoh): Sir, will the Hon. Minister consider allowing season parking ticket holders to opt for an alternative? In other words, they are prepared to pay over and above the $15 for a season ticket that can be used in other HDB estates as well. This will probably alleviate the problems of families visiting one another.

Mr Teh Cheang Wan: In this case, I would advise them to use coupons.

Mr Rohan bin Kamis (Telok Blangah): Mr Speaker, Sir, in order to encourage closer family ties, could the Minister consider asking the HDB to charge a flat rate for parking on a per entry basis for its car parks during Sundays and public holidays?

Mr Teh Cheang Wan: Mr Speaker, Sir, I think this problem has been looked into. We have found that this is not advisable because if we allow parking on a per entry basis, then what we are afraid of is that on Sundays people might leave their cars for the whole day. If it is on a per entry basis, the charge cannot be too high. So they leave their cars in the car park the whole of Sunday and they may even go somewhere else, to the pictures or visit friends. Then we may have a situation where the season car parking ticket holders come back and find that all the parking lots are full and they cannot get in. Or other casual visitors may come to visit friends and they may find that all the parking lots have been taken up.

Mr Teo Chong Tee: Mr Speaker, Sir, I am suggesting here that the parking authorities introduce certain visitors' parking lots for people who are there on short visits. If these visitors' parking lots are introduced, motorists can park at these lots for short calls and perhaps the enforcement officers could keep an eye on just these visitors' parking lots so that any vehicle found parked longer than five or 10 minutes, they can then issue a notice.

Mr Teh Cheang Wan: Sir, I think I have answered that question. We allow people a five-minute grace period and if they park longer than five minutes they will get a notice. And those who park for less than five minutes, no notice will be issued to them. Usually the enforcement officers do not strictly adhere to the five minutes grace period. For example, if a person parks his car at a car park and the enforcement officer is not around, he may park for 10 or 15 minutes. When the enforcement officer comes round, he looks at that particular vehicle which is without a coupon and he allows a five-minute grace period before he issues a ticket. Quite often, the car may be parked there for 25 minutes and then a ticket is issued.