Chronicle Editor
WE want to say thumbs-up to Bulawayo’s parking management company, Tendy Three Investments (TTI) for responding positively to the motoring public’s plea for parking fees to be reviewed downwards.
The company has slashed the parking fees by 50 percent following series of consultations and engagements between Bulawayo City Council (BCC) and other stakeholders.
The TTI executive chairperson and director Mr Lizwe Mabuza said the company reviewed its packages targeting motorists who spend the better part of the day in town.
“The reduction in parking fees was necessitated by engagements which we had with the business community. They complained that the parking fees were exorbitant hence our decision to reduce the fees,” said Mr Mabuza.
The company which was charging motorists $8 a day for parking eight hours, has reduced the fees to $4.
Motorists who park to do business for an hour or less will however continue to pay $1 an hour.
Motorists have welcomed the move by TTI but said the company should consider reducing the hourly parking rate to 50 cents for those spending a few hours in the city centre.
We want at this juncture to commend TTI for taking such a bold move to slash its fees by 50 percent at a time when many businesses are making super profits by fleecing customers.
The company has demonstrated that it is sensitive to the plight of the motoring public hence its move to reduce its revenue by 50 percent.
The company and BCC have to work on rehabilitating parking bays and road markings which require a substantial amount of money but despite this challenge, the company decided to reduce its daily takings by almost half.
It is our hope that following the reduction in parking fees, the company will witness an increase in the number of motorists paying flat daily or monthly fees.
We also expect a drastic reduction in the number of motorist evading to pay for parking given the reduced fees.
Since the coming in of TTI, there is orderliness in the CBD as motorists are now complying with parking regulations.
The haphazard parking which was common in the CBD is now a thing of the past because of regular patrols by TTI workers.
The company should, however, urgently address the marking of prohibited parking areas at hotels and other buildings where motorists only learn of the prohibition after being clamped.
The issue of parking bays for buses, especially cross-border buses remains an area of concern.
The buses seem to be competing with small cars for the limited parking spaces in some areas hence the need for the company to come up with designated parking zones for buses only.
We want to urge other businesses to learn from TTI that businesses and customers need each other hence the need for businesses to charge affordable prices for goods and services.
Online Reporter