For drivers, parking charges can add up to a substantial amount each month. Hence, when I drive, I will try to find the carpark with the lowest fee.

Recently, I went to the National University of Singapore to participate in the National Health Study. I was to report to the NUS Tahir Foundation Building/MD1 research lab on July 4.

I found some carparks near the building through the street directory app. But when I got there, I found that these carparks were for staff and private label holders only.

As it was starting to rain, I parked at a carpark that was about 80m away from the building.

The health screening took slightly more than two hours, and when I returned to the carpark, I was surprised to find that the parking meter had deducted more than $10 from my CashCard.

This parking rate is high for two hours of parking on a Saturday morning. Furthermore, the carpark was quite empty.

I have also noticed that carparks in industrial and commercial buildings have raised their rates.

But the parking spaces and conditions of these carparks remain the same, apart from becoming older and more run-down.

Are carpark rates regulated here or are owners of properties free to decide on the charges?

Kelvin Lim Gim Chong