HDB will implement mechanised parking systems at three pilot sites in Bukit Panjang, Yishun and Changi Village, announced Government Parliamentary Committee for National Development and Environment chairman Lee Bee Wah on Sunday.

The implementation follows a joint study by the parliamentary committee and HDB started last year on the viability of mechanised parking systems (MPS) in Singapore to address car park shortages in older HDB estates, where space for new lots to be built are limited.

The three sites are the carpark beside Block 259A Bangkit Road, the carpark next to Block 666A Yishun Avenue 4 and behind Block 1 Changi Village Road. The pilot implementation is set to be completed by 2015.

"We have assessed that mechanised car parks have good potential as they can provide additional parking lots in estates with site constraints. However, not every HDB estate is suitable for MPS implementation," said Ms Lee, who toured the Bukit Panjang pilot site on Sunday with fellow GPC member and Bukit Panjang MP Teo Ho Pin.

The Bukit Panjang pilot site is situated next to a multi-storey carpark and occupies an area the size of a basketball court. It will likely have a two-tower mechanised parking system at least 10 storeys high each that will provide an estimated 60 car park slots in total.

On his blog on Sunday, Minister for National Development Khaw Boon Wan said car park shortages become a problem for HDB estates as car ownership increases and adding new car park lots might "not always be possible" with land constraints.

"The pilot would allow HDB to gauge public acceptance of the system," he wrote.

To park a car using the mechanised system, a driver drives his vehicle into a car-lift, parks it in the correct position and pulls the handbrake. The system will automatically park the car after the driver keys in a pin number.