Pune Metro's Swargate station parking unavailable to commuters, forcing roadside parking

According to Hindustan Times, commuters at Swargate metro station in Pune cannot currently use a dedicated parking facility in the station complex, so many are parking on nearby roads. The practice is adding to traffic congestion around the busy Swargate junction and raising road safety concerns.

Parking not accessible to riders

Swargate station is part of a larger multimodal hub being developed to bring together Pune Metro, PMPML bus services and other transport modes. According to the report, the metro structure at the station is complete, but access to parking remains unresolved. Daily users arriving on two-wheelers and in cars say they have no suitable place to leave their vehicles while they continue by public transport.

What Maha-Metro says

Atul Gadgil, director (works) at Maha-Metro, said the metro structure at Swargate has been completed. He added that the wider hub is being developed by a third-party contractor and that a parking facility exists at ground level. A Maha-Metro official said the contractor is currently using that parking, so commuters do not have access. The official said Maha-Metro will ask the contractor to allow commuters to use the space.

Commuter concerns

Commuters quoted in the report said the situation undermines the purpose of encouraging people to use public transport. One commuter from the Swargate area said they had to leave a two-wheeler on the road and worried about its safety. Another said that if parking exists within the hub but cannot be used, there is little justification for keeping it inaccessible. A passenger who asked not to be named said the existing facility should be made available rather than waiting for a new solution.

Lakshmi Puja metro timings

Separately, according to Hindustan Times, Pune Metro will extend its usual operations by two hours on Sunday, November 8, for Lakshmi Puja, following requests from commuters, the metro administration said. Services that normally run from 6 am to 6 pm on Sundays will run until 8 pm on November 8. Services will be suspended between 8 pm and 11 pm that day. From Monday, November 9, metro services will return to the regular schedule of 6 am to 11 pm, officials said.