Pune: PMC Demolishes Defunct Mechanical Parking Near Sambhaji Garden on JM Road

Pune, 25th September 2026: The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has finally demolished the defunct mechanical parking facility near Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj Garden on Jangli Maharaj Road, bringing down a project built at a cost of crores of rupees but which remained unused for years.

The civic body had earlier decided to remove the ageing structure instead of spending more money on repairing and restarting the facility. The demolition has now been carried out, ending the project that was funded through taxpayers’ money.

The mechanical parking facility was built to ease parking woes in the busy Jangli Maharaj Road area. However, problems related to vehicle dimensions and repeated technical failures prevented it from being used as intended. The PMC also failed to find a contractor with the expertise required to operate, maintain and repair the system.

As a result, the facility remained shut for years, while its structure deteriorated and became unsafe.

According to civic officials, the cost of reviving the facility would have been higher than the revenue it could generate. The proposal to dismantle the structure was therefore placed before the standing committee and approved.

The PMC had invited seven tenders for the demolition, of which four were found eligible. The lowest bid was subsequently approved, paving the way for removal of the structure.

With the demolition complete, residents are now keen to know how the prime site will be used. The PMC had earlier considered constructing a larger multi-level parking facility at the location, taking into account the size of modern vehicles. It had also explored developing parking facilities at other locations under the build-operate-transfer (BOT) model.

However, there is still no clarity on the design, cost or implementation of any new project at the site. With the city continuing to face a shortage of parking spaces, the demolition has also revived questions over whether the planning and execution shortcomings of the earlier project will be examined before a new facility is proposed.