Abu Dhabi: Complaints against motorcyclists who damage cars while parking between vehicles in Abu Dhabi have been on the rise as already tough parking conditions are starting to get more challenging, motorists told Gulf News.
“Motorcyclists are only fined if they occupy a parking space designated for vehicles, and do not pay for their spot using the parking metres,” a Mawaqif representative said.
“If a motorcycle is parked between two cars, they do not get a fine as they are not obliged to pay for their parking spot,” the spokesperson said. There are no dedicated parking slots for bikes in the capital or elsewhere in the UAE. This makes it difficult for ordinary motorists to get in and out of parking areas where bikes have taken up space. “I always end up waiting for delivery boys to leave the parking spot because I am afraid of hitting their bike or getting my four-wheel scratched,” said 21 year-old Yemeni Hanan Al No’man.
Similarly, human resources officer Mais Al Kayal told Gulf News that she struggles when entering or exiting a parking space if there is a motorcycle parked next to it. “Walking towards my car once, I saw a biker scratch the side of my car while he was leaving the parking spot. I understand that, if you are making a delivery, it would not make sense to pay for your parking but there should be a designated area for motorcycle drivers,” she said.
Motorcyclists themselves find this issue tricky at times. “As someone who drives a car and a bike, I find it very easy to park my bike whether on pavements or in between cars as I never get fined when doing that. However, when roaming around a parking lot for well over half-an-hour, I find it very frustrating to see a motorcycle occupying a full parking spot making it impossible for me to park my car,” said Hassan Al Tayee.
While many residents remain unaware of this, there are areas in Abu Dhabi which allow motorcyclists to park. These may be in the form of an empty, ground-level area surrounded by a pavement, or tighter parking slots for smaller road vehicles that complement regular car-parking spots.
The representative of an Australian restaurant chain said their delivery crew normally didn’t face problems with parking. “We usually deliver to company buildings, and there we find some form of unmarked ground bound by a pavement which seems convenient for our delivery-boys to park in. Otherwise, we find no trouble in underground parkings, as our mall provides a designated area for all delivery bikes.”
