Forty cars that were illegally parked on public roadsides have been towed away by the Daun Penh district administration following tightened rules and a ban-notice on selling used vehicles there.
Daun Penh district governor Sok Penh Vuth said on June 13 that the order was given after the administration had issued a June 8 notice banning vehicles from being parked on the roadsides for sale because it negatively affected public order, caused traffic jams and spoiled the capital’s beauty.
“On Saturday, 37 cars were towed away, and on Sunday morning three cars were impounded. Of those 40 cars, nine belonged to the general public and the rest belonged to vendors who parked them along the roadsides, causing disruption to public order,” he said.
He added that the police would implement the rule from now on without any exceptions. They would not allow cars to be parked, sold or stopped on the roadsides causing traffic jams, especially on roads with no-park or no-stop signs.
The cars that were towed are being kept at the district administrative lot so that their owners can come in and claim them without any fines this time, but the owners have to sign a letter agreeing to stop parking them illegally and any owners who violate the ban again could have their vehicles impounded until they pay the fines.
“So far eight car owners have signed contracts and were instructed and educated. The owners are just regular people. But we will particularly implement administrative measures more strictly against cars being put up for sale – we have to keep them for three to five days before returning them to their owners,” he said.
Following the lifting of the lockdown in Phnom Penh, the district administration had observed that a small number of people had parked their cars on the roadsides to advertise them for sale. Having seen this, the district administration on June 8 issued a notice laying out some rules that banned parking or selling cars on roadsides.
According to the notice, they were given until June 12 to remove their cars from these locations. Those who failed to follow the notice would have their cars towed and the administration would not be responsible for any property damage.
A Daun Penh district resident hailed the move, saying the roads in the area were too narrow and if there were many cars parked along the roads it would make it difficult to walk and they would cause traffic jams.
However, she suggested that the authorities establish a public parking lot in the district to make it easier for people to park their cars properly to avoid parking on the road.
“It is also difficult for home owners who have cars because they do not know where to park their cars, except in front of their houses. Our area doesn’t have a public parking lot,” she said.
