Phuket Opinion: Parking Management Not ' The Impossible'

[Lite Beer]

Phuket Opinion: Parking management not ‘The Impossible’

Phuket Gazette -

PHUKET: Rising property prices, poor public planning and a dire lack of public transport options have combined to leave Phuket with a lack of public parking in some of its most densely-settled areas.

In few places is the problem more acute than in shopping center parking garages. While some are better than others, the traffic nightmare that persists in some, during peak hours, indicates that the prevailing logic is “never turn away a customer” – even when the garage itself is already dangerously beyond capacity.

Viewing the situation through a more cynical prism, perhaps the management logic is that allowing multi-dimensional gridlock to persist is the perfect way to create a “captive market”.

Whether the situation is the result of incompetence or greed, we ask operators of these facilities to reconsider the impact on consumers, who can and will go elsewhere.

Tales of parking garage woe are common in popular blog sites, but these are probably just the tip of the iceberg.

This editorial writer has already suffered ruination of two shopping trips this month as the result of garage mismanagement. The first involved getting trapped in the basement of a parking garage at a large retail complex in Patong for 45 minutes, all of which was spent jockeying for position with other drivers – all angry, aggressive and desperate to make an exit. Worse, staff there refused to open a second available exit to alleviate the problem, even for customers holding free parking vouchers, because “the computer there is broke”, we were told.

A week later we arrived at a well-known mall in Muang District with tickets in hand for the movie The Impossible, only to miss almost half of the film because someone had given up, parked illegally, pulled the key from the ignition, locked the doors and abandoned his vehicle in the midst of the impenetrable gridlock.

That the parking facility in question already employs one ill-tempered man to maneuver about the garage with a car forklift says a great deal about the number of people who do the exact same thing – simply give up and abandon ship.

The Phuket Gazette fails to understand how such situations are allowed to develop or persist. Each garage has a finite number of spaces and computer-equipped staff at both entrances and exits to monitor the number of passing vehicles. Even if the employees’ reasoning abilities have been severely compromised by exposure to carbon monoxide, it should be simple enough to program a computer to automatically drop a gate at the entrance and post a sign reading “Sorry, parking lot full. No entry” after a certain, safe number of cars has been reached.

As some malls appear unwilling or unable to properly manage their parking facilities, the Gazette calls upon the Phuket Provincial Office to better enforce existing safety regulations, to ensure that the retailers do a better job of acting in their customers’ – and therefore their own – best interests.

Source: http://www.phuketgazette.net/phuket_news/2012/Phuket-Opinion-Parking-management-not-The-Impossible-19718.html

-- Phuket Gazette 2012-12-16

[TS79]

Since they changed their entry / exit configuration a couple of weeks ago the problem in Jungceylon has become a lot worse. Why they don't use 2 exits I don't know. Yesterday it took me 20 minutes to get out the garage even though 'luckily' i'd parked pretty close to the exit point. It must have been taking those at the other side of the garage a lot lot longer.

Unfortunately it's only going to get worse as the high season progresses. This was one place I used to like to park if I visited Patong but seems everyone has the same idea now and I imagine the central fiasco is making more people use Jungceylon exacerbating the problem. Not many alternatives though so in future it will have to be in and out before lunchtime.

[Soupdragon]

Since they changed their entry / exit configuration a couple of weeks ago the problem in Jungceylon has become a lot worse. Why they don't use 2 exits I don't know. Yesterday it took me 20 minutes to get out the garage even though 'luckily' i'd parked pretty close to the exit point. It must have been taking those at the other side of the garage a lot lot longer.

Unfortunately it's only going to get worse as the high season progresses. This was one place I used to like to park if I visited Patong but seems everyone has the same idea now and I imagine the central fiasco is making more people use Jungceylon exacerbating the problem. Not many alternatives though so in future it will have to be in and out before lunchtime.

That is the only solution I have come up with.

The road works outside Central are adding to the problems there. After suffering the frustrations of using the parking facilities there you now face the additional problems of actually getting out of the carpark and into the traffic.

[NomadJoe]

"Whether the situation is the result of incompetence or greed,..."

Human nature leaves ample room for both.

[NamKangMan]

"Whether the situation is the result of incompetence or greed,..."

Human nature leaves ample room for both.

Suffice to say, Phuket is a place where Thai "human nature" can roam free and unabated by such trival things as the law, morals and ethics. :) :)

[steelepulse]

Back to the topic at hand, I will not go to Central or it's likes during the weekend or on a holiday. With all the new cars being purchased every day as discussed in another thread, there simply aren't enough parking spaces for those that know how to drive, not too mention new cars owners without a clue how to drive or park. I can't wait for the finance companies to start repossessing these new cars and getting them off the roads once punters can't make their payments.