SANDAKAN: The Sandakan Municipal Council (SMC) will implement the parking coupon system to replace the present parking charge system starting May this year.
The change is necessary because the system has been adopted by nearly 50 local authorities across the country, including Kota Kinabalu and Tawau.
Besides being easy to implement, the parking coupon system will make enforcement work more efficient.
Apart from the parking coupon, SMC will also make available a Daily Pass and Monthly Pass as an alternative to those users who park their vehicle for a long period as the rates for these two passes are cheaper and user-friendly.
Meanwhile, SMC will begin charging parking fee at several satellite towns here to prevent parking lots from being monopolised by users and to have a more organized and systematic parking lots control system.
In addition, charging a parking fee will also enable SMC to carry out maintenance work from time to time and to facilitate enforcement work.
SMV will also restructure the existing parking charges at the main town centre to streamline with that charged in satellite towns. This restructuring will make it more practical and easier to be understood by the public.
The implementation of parking charges in satellite towns will be carried out in stages, and for the first phase, it will involve Bandar Sibuga Jaya, Pekan Batu 8, Bandar Prima, Bandar Indah, Bandar Utama, Bandar Kim Fung/Liberty Parade, Bandar Pasar Raya, Bandar Labuk Jaya, Bandar Megah Jaya dan Bandar Tyng.