Qatar is set to give final shape to its '2017 Parking Master Plan' which will see introduction of a new parking policy as well as bring plans for new parking lots and the adoption of sophisticated multi-level automated parking systems.

The parking related problems are on the rise in Qatar with an increase in population and the number of vehicles, reported The Peninsula, citing senior officials from the Ministry of Transport and Communication.

According to technical calculations, commercial and office developments require one parking space for every 65 sq m of floor area, while residential colonies need either one space per 120 sq m or one space per apartment.

With the parking issue worsening day by day owing to a spurt in population and the number of vehicles in the country, the ministry is racing against time to get the 2017 master plan ready before the second annual Smart Parking Qatar conference to be held from April 10 to 11.

The second annual Smart Parking Qatar conference, a component of Project Qatar exhibition, will “develop car parking management strategies and innovations for sustainable and livable cities”.

Market sources think that automated mechanized parking systems could be the solution to parking woes particularly in urban areas.

These systems can be ideally installed in condensed urban areas to provide a quick and reliable solution to parking problems, it stated.

According to experts, Qatar is set to witness an increase in the construction of new malls, hotels and mixed used developments including Lusail Smart City over the next few years.

In addition, consultants for QRail have started working on the integration of space and parking (park & ride) before tendering out for contracting in the next year.

There are also legacy plans for the stadiums, which all involve potential smart parking investments, they added.