Sharjah’s extra paid parking hours at 7-day zones a ‘relief’ for some residents; here’s why.

Sharjah’s move to extend paid parking hours at seven-day zones may mean higher charges — but for many of the emirate’s residents, it comes as a relief. For them, it means freeing up parking spaces from non-residents who would leave their cars in these areas overnight.

Abu Ahmed, a long-time Sharjah resident, said getting a parking spot in his neighborhood has become a headache because shop vehicles and commercial cars would be taking up several slots. These would be there from 10pm, when free parking begins, and would be gone before charges start again in the morning.

“Sometimes, we drive around 10 to 15 minutes in the evening or over the weekends to get parking closer to our building,” he said.

Under the revised timing for the seven-day zones marked by blue signs, Sharjah motorists will have to pay for parking slots from 8am to midnight from November 1, the municipality announced. Previously, the paid parking fees applied from 8am to 10pm. These 16-hour paid parking zones will be operational throughout the week and on public holidays.

“With these extended paid parking hours, I am sure finding a parking spot won’t be that much hassle,” Ahmed said, adding that the fees for two more hours would deter non-residents from using the blue zone.

Besides residents, many delivery boys were also happy about the introduction of more blue parking zones. This move, they said, would make parking easier for them when they come to different areas to deliver goods.

Mashooq Khan, who works for a delivery company, said it had been a challenge to find parking in some parts of Sharjah in the evening.

“I drove around for quite some time to find a proper place to park my car because I have to carry bulky items to deliver to customers. But I am not always successful because parking spaces are full. This new initiative from Sharjah Municipality will improve chances of getting parking closer to places where I want to park,” Khan said.

Private parking prices on the rise

Demand for parking has increased substantially in Sharjah – especially in areas that are bordering Dubai – as several new residents move in. The influx of new tenants has prompted private parking lot owners to increase rates, residents said.

“They know that public parking spaces are full, so they are capitalising on the market situation because as we can see traffic has exponentially increased in Sharjah and Dubai as many new residents move to UAE,” said expat Saleem Noman.

Noman has been forced to bear the price hikes as he now relies on private parking.

“I used to pay Dh250 monthly to park my car in a private parking lot. The price has been increased to Dh300. Similarly, another private parking lot in Al Majaz has increased it to Dh350 because of the prime location that provides faster access to the main road. (If one is coming from other areas) sometimes, it takes 15 minutes just to get to the main road,” he said.

With the new measures laid down by the Sharjah Municipality, it will be easier for residents to find parking closer to their homes, Noman said.