Starting August 16, updated parking rules have come into effect in Almaty. Now, city residents can get a free parking spot for their car within a 500-meter radius of their home, reports infohub.kz.
According to the decision of the Almaty maslikhat, the use of municipal paid parking lots is now charged per minute, rather than for a fixed time period. This change applies to all municipal parking lots in the city.
On sidewalk-type parking lots, the first five minutes remain free. This time is provided for passenger pick-up or drop-off, as well as for loading and unloading a vehicle. If the car stays longer, the fee is charged from the end of the grace period, but taking into account the first five minutes of parking.
In addition, local residents now have the opportunity to park for free. Homeowners and tenants living in apartment buildings can use one selected municipal parking lot for free within a radius of up to 500 meters from their apartment.
The document notes: "Free parking is provided on the basis of an application submitted via the website of the management organization or a unified platform for receiving and processing all citizen requests."
Importantly, free parking is provided for one car per apartment. However, the benefit does not apply to underground parking lots, park-and-ride facilities, multi-level and mechanized parking lots.
Also, it is forbidden to leave cars with license plates that cannot be properly identified or are installed in such a way that they can be hidden or altered.
Residents of the metropolis can make post-payment for parking. Payment can be made until 11:59 PM on the same day the car was parked. The municipal sidewalk-type parking lots themselves now operate from 8:00 AM to 8:00 PM.