Thiruvananthapuram, Apr 5 (IANS): UST, the biggest IT employer in Kerala, on Tuesday launched a new Multi-Level Car Parking (MLCP) facility for its employees at its campus here.

Upon completion, the MLCP facility will have the capacity to accommodate 4,000 four-wheeled vehicles and in the first phase that has been now opened will house 1,800 four wheelers.

The present new parking facility is one of the largest in the city and when completed, it will be the biggest in the entire state.

It took just 34 months to complete the first phase construction, including area development.

The new facility comprises four levels and is the phase one of the MLCP project.

"The parking lot is sure to be a pride for the city, owing to its size. In future, we can add another five floors to accommodate a total of 4000 cars, probably making this the largest parking facility in the state. We are also planning to install solar panels on top of the MLCP in line with our sustainability initiative and our goal to be carbon neutral," said Shilpa Menon, Center Head at the campus here.

The four levels of parking have been equipped with four elevators and six fire escape exits. It has been made future-ready in tune with the times, with as many as 75 EV charging bays incorporated. The driveways have been built with safety and comfortable driving in mind. The one-way driveways are 9 metres wide at the entrance and 6 metres wide after the entry point.

Adding a green cover to the project, the volunteers at UST have also created a Miyawaki forest around the parking facility. As many as 1000 fruit bearing and teak trees have been planted.