Dear Editor,

IN SPITE of the ruckus caused throughout the capital city and country by the proposed installation and implementation of paid parking systems in Georgetown; regardless of the concerns expressed by civil society, the business community, non-governmental organizations, the media entities, Guyana’s academia, private citizens, and some governmental officials and organizations, the Mayor of Georgetown and some Councillors seems hell bent on rolling out this albatross (parking meters) around the necks of the citizens and visitors to Georgetown.

This is a most unjust, iniquitous and unreasonable imposition. This is a situation whereby a foreign company with comparatively little investment would be able to milk Guyanese mercilessly for at least another twenty years.

Why was multi-level parking systems not considered as an option to provide relief for our parking systems, since it has a number of advantages, such as optimal utilization of space and a secure environment?

Multiple level car parking systems are much more in vogue in other progressive countries as a method of automatically parking and retrieving cars, providing advantages like safety; saving of space, time and fuel. But this of course would require a much greater investment by the parking meter company than what Smart City Solutions is doing, and that is putting down multi-space meters that control multiple spaces per block, whereby parkers will have to walk several car lengths to the meter.

A question to be asked is whether the municipality would rehabilitate the streets on which persons would be required to pay to park, or whether they would just put down these meters on these potholed, decrepit roads that constantly damage persons’ vehicles?

It is such a shame that our roads — which our ancestors built often with their bare hands, and for which this present Council is failing to maintain — shall be used to make a fortune for a foreign company and a few corrupt municipal officials, who could not care less about what happens to Georgetown’s commercial sector as a consequence of the further economic hardship this burden will heap on the citizens of, and visitors to, Georgetown.

With thanks,
RILEY MATTHEWS