The Őrmező P1 and P2 car parks next to Kelenföldi Railway Station, as well as the Etele tér P1 and P2 car parks, which are popular with Erd residents, cost a lot to use. These were created under the Metro 4 investment, supported by the European Union, with a total of 1,453 parking spaces.
A condition of the EU subsidy was that car parks operate free of charge for five years. This period for the four P+R car parks expired on November 17, 2022, and the Metropolitan Association has determined that motorists will have to pay from July 1. According to the justification, since they found that the parking lots were not only used for P+R, but also for commercial purposes, and that people in the neighborhood also stored their cars there, with tolls charged, the parking lots would really be able to perform a P+ function. R. In this way, the procedure will serve the interests of travelers from the agglomeration.
The usage fee is not terribly large: 350 forints from 6-10pm, and 105 forints from 10pm-6pm.
Civic organizations dealing with transportation, such as Közlekédő Tömeg, have long recommended the introduction of tolls. Referring to the fact that the original goal – reducing traffic in downtown Budapest – could not be achieved if the flow of daily commuters at the Budapest gates was not stopped due to lack of space.
“The use of 1,500 parking spaces is important even at night,” he wrote. in office NGO in September 2018 – According to our experience, it is between 30 and 40%. Among the stored vehicles, we also find cars for sale that were forced out of car dealerships due to lack of space, pizza delivery vans and similar vehicles kept for commercial purposes, as well as vehicles belonging to residents of nearby residential areas.
This was reversed by residents in the comments, as parking lots in the apartment complex were occupied by P+R passenger cars. Obviously, cross-implication is a natural part of such a situation. In 2018, several people suggested that the district offer paid parking to non-residents to resolve the situation, but this did not materialize.
The citizens also suggested that “if the car in question enters the parking lot before 2:00 AM and leaves it after 7:00 AM, it should pay an additional fee of HUF 1,500 for parking. This would encourage all vehicle owners to leave the parking lot before the morning rush hour, making room for what was already made: the commuters coming to the subway.” This proposal was not ultimately carried out either.
Among the commentators, of course, there were many who thought the fee unfair. There were those who argued that it would be too expensive to go to the beer pub with colleagues after work, because the car would be parked where it had been left the previous morning until the next afternoon.
Driving to Budapest is definitely not economical due to traffic jams and expensive parking. By enabling free P+R parking, the goal was that if several people left by car, they would have the opportunity to park it at the capital’s borders. However, this attracted cars rather than deterred them. Among those commuting to the capital, the proportion of those using public transport or cars is 40:60 percent, and the opposite is acceptable. In recent years, the number of people driving to the capital has not decreased, but has increased significantly. According to surveys, more than 300,000 cars leave and return from the agglomeration every day. It is understood that the capital is trying to take steps to reduce traffic. The question is how likely this is for the people of Erd.
At Érd, there are good opportunities for employees to travel to Budapest by train and bus. Public transportation is available to most parts of the city within an 8-10 minute walk. Buses run frequently during peak periods, as do trains – on a fixed schedule, on two railway lines – with which you can get to Kelenföld railway station at a speed that a car simply cannot compete with. In addition, leaving a car in Kelenföld now costs about 7,000 extra HUF per month.
Everything points toward cars staying home and people switching to public transport and bikes within Érd. In many cases this could just mean a change of habits, and would be very beneficial for the air of Érd, as well as reducing traffic in the city centre. You can run errands or read while traveling, there is no “traffic jam stress”. And for those who still want to move to Budapest by car, it will now be easier to find a paid and guarded parking space in Kelenföld.
As for the P+R parking in Érd, you can park at both the city center and Érdliget station (in the former case, it was neither easy nor ideal), but Érd and Tétényliget stations are nearly empty. The same goes for bike storage, adding that despite the space, the quality of bike racks is objectionable.
Overall, we don’t see a really convincing argument for the people of Erd to grieve the loss of free parking in Kelenfold. We look forward to your comments on this.
