The "culture" of parking is developing in Turkmenistan
Around Ashgabat, at the entrances to the city, four large intercepting parking lots were built for a total of 4820 places - for transport coming from outside of the capital. This allows the guests of the capital to leave their cars on long-distance parking lots, and from there to get to the city center by public transport and taxis.
One of parking lots is on the eastern outskirts of the capital, near Anau, with a total area of 12 hectares, with all necessary conditions for simultaneous parking of 622 cars and 636 trucks.
The other is located on the territory of Ak Bugday etrap. It has a total area of 20 hectares and is designed for parking 1400 cars.
The third parking lot with a total area of 8 hectares appeared on the northern side of the capital, near Choganli. It can take 345 cars and 417 trucks simultaneously.
And, finally, on the western entrance to Ashgabat, near the village of Babarab, a parking lot with a total area of 20 hectares for 1400 trucks was built.
Near the car parks there are also small hotels, small car repair shops, car washes and cafes.
In the city itself, there also are more parking lots and multi-level parking places. As the residents of the capital note, every year the throughput of Ashgabat streets increases. The number of traffic jams, time on the road is reduced, and the safety of drivers and pedestrians is increased. This, in the first place, is achievable due to the city's thoughtful road system, quality repairs and the laying of new wide streets.
However, if you look at the question in a complex way, you can see the great positive role of putting into operation new parking lots and specialized parking places, which recently began to appear in large numbers in all cities of Turkmenistan.
How do the new parking lots affect the traffic situation in the cities?
Cars do not stand idle on the roads. The fact is that most people use personal transport twice a day - in order to come to work, and then - to return home. If there is a shortage of parking spaces in the city, drivers are forced to leave cars at the roadside, thus making it difficult for other motorists. And when the city provides a sufficient number of parking lots, the number of congestion on the roads is dramatically reduced.
What is the advantage of drivers who leave their vehicles in parking lots?
There are a lot of advantages. We asked the capital car owner, who constantly uses the city parking lots, to comment on some of them:
"Leaving a car in a parking lot is calmer. You know for sure that the car is guarded, and nobody will touch it on the road. In the summer the car does not collect dust, and in winter it doesn’t attract snow or rain. At parking lots it is always clean and there always are auto parts stores, car washes and cafes near them."
How well are urban parking lots equipped?
In addition to convenience, modern parking facilities represent a new area of urban functional design. They are well decorated, thought out, and equipped with the latest technology. Here is how one of the motorists of the capital describes the process of parking:
"When driving into a parking lot, you need to drive up to the automatic terminal, which reads the number of the car and issues a coupon to the parking lot. It is very convenient to find a free place, since there are monitors everywhere displaying occupied and free places. After you get into the parking space, the sensor detects it as occupied and displays it on the monitors. When leaving the parking lot you need to present your ticket. The terminal automatically calculates the parking time and the amount of payment. You can pay in cash or with a bank card."
How does the increase in car parks affect urban residents who do not have cars?
There is a lot of free space in the yards. If there are no car parks in the districts, drivers have to leave cars in the yards, which often hinders the movement of pedestrians. In addition, cars left at the entrances to houses can interfere with the passage of specialized vehicles - fire trucks and ambulances.
Is there enough parking in the cities of Turkmenistan?
The cities in Turkmenistan are expanding day by day and the number of required parking spaces is growing. Thanks to the integrated approach to town planning, more and more new parking lots are being built in the cities of the country, which leads to an increase in the "culture" of parking among motorists.
