Shillong, Feb 6: In a major push to tackle chronic traffic congestion, Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma on Friday inaugurated Meghalaya’s first Automated Multilevel Car Park at Vivekananda Road near the Additional Secretariat, marking what the government called a key step in a long-term decongestion plan for the capital.

Addressing the gathering, Sangma said traffic remains one of Shillong’s most pressing urban challenges and that the new facility is part of a “multi-pronged strategy” to systematically ease congestion.

“Decongesting Shillong requires coordinated interventions. The multilevel car park we are inaugurating today is one part of a larger solution,” he said.

The Chief Minister revealed that nine more multilevel car parks are in the pipeline, expected to collectively accommodate around 1,300 vehicles, significantly boosting organized parking capacity in the city.

To further expand parking infrastructure, the government is also rolling out a new parking policy that will allow private landowners to partner with the state to develop parking spaces on their land. Under the proposed model, landowners will be permitted to collect parking fees, creating a revenue-sharing opportunity while addressing the shortage of designated parking zones.

“One of the major reasons for traffic congestion is random roadside parking. We must provide proper, designated spaces so that vehicles are not parked haphazardly,” Sangma said.

Outlining a broader urban mobility roadmap, the Chief Minister highlighted several measures at advanced stages of planning and execution.

These include the creation of dedicated parking spaces for public transport buses and taxis in Kyndailad, relocation of hawkers from congested road stretches, expansion of the Umshyrpi–Seventh Mile road, and a proposed elevated or four-lane corridor from Rhino Museum Point to Civil Hospital and Barik.

He also pointed to the proposed shift of administrative offices to the New Administrative City as a long-term measure to reduce traffic pressure in Shillong’s core areas.

“All these proposals are being taken up not just for immediate relief but to ensure smoother traffic movement for decades to come,” he said.

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