Letting it park for you on the island

(From left) M Summit Group assistant marketing manager Alex Wai with Tong and other staff members observing how a car is being parked by the mechanical system.

FINDING a space to park your car on Penang island, especially during the day in George Town, is a nightmare.

Many drivers usually succumb to parking illegally along the yellow-lined roads. It is no surprise then that Penang Island City Council issues an average of 40,000 parking summonses a month.

In a classic case of missing the most obvious solution, Penang never had a mechanical carpark system that could house a fleet of cars in a really small footprint, until one developer came along.

Within Menara M Summit, along Magazine Road and across the street from Komtar, is the first large-scale mechanical carpark in Penang: three columns, 34 storeys or 71m high and looking like giant shelves for cars.

Exactly 204 cars can be parked into those columns, which take up a ground space of just 23m by 7.5m.

There is no such thing as walking into a lonely multi-storey carpark late at night if you have to work late in Menara M Summit. After slipping your paid parking ticket into the machine, you just wait comfortably downstairs for the system to bring your car down to you.

There is also no chance for scoundrels to sneak around the carpark in search of cars they can break into, or worse, steal. They just cannot walk around in those columns of parked cars.

This carpark costs RM5 for the first two hours or part thereof, and RM2 for every subsequent hour.

The first large-scale mechanical carpark in Penang at Menara M Summit. — Photo courtesy of M Summit Group  

M Summit Group project engineer Tong Swee Haw said the state-of-the-art carpark uses technology from China and vehicles as big as Toyota Vellfire and Mercedes-Benz E class can easily go in.

“There are three bays, and one needs to wait about three-and-a-half minutes for the car to come down. It can handle most of the cars in the market.

“It is safe as there are instructions provided to the driver, as they drive in and drop off their vehicles.

“Sensors make sure there is no one in the vehicle before it is lifted up to the parking bay,” he said at Menara M Summit, which houses the M Summit Group headquarters, “The Skye” event space and M Summit 191 Executive Suites.

M Summit Group development planning manager Moh Wei Ren said the mechanical car park has been a hit with the public.

“Some amused drivers were seen taking videos of their vehicles being rotated and descending from the top. It is a great solution to solve urban parking woes with a limited space. It is efficient, time-saving and boosts personal safety.

“Drivers just need to drive onto the platform, get out of their vehicle and watch their car parked by the system.

“We hope more automated carparks as such will be built on Penang island to address the serious parking constraints,” Moh said.