New Delhi, Nov 4 (PTI) Serpentine queues of vehicles, gridlocked market roads and commuters inching through bottlenecks marked Delhi’s roads on Wednesday, as festive shopping rush, traffic snarls and restrictions under GRAP added to the city’s traffic woes.
From the narrow, crowded stretches of Sadar Bazar and Karol Bagh to busy intersections across central Delhi, commuters reported prolonged traffic jams and encroachments that left little room for pedestrians, with several complaining of inadequate traffic personnel at key congestion points.
At Sadar Bazar, the stretch towards Qutub Road Chowk was reported to be severely congested, with two-wheelers and other vehicles allegedly parked illegally along the footpath, leaving pedestrians with virtually no space to walk. Commuters also flagged the absence of cranes to remove unauthorisedly parked vehicles and clear the encroachments.
Similar scenes were reported on Ajmal Khan Road, where commuters complained of vehicles being parked indiscriminately and alleged that no action was being taken despite the problem recurring daily.
The festive rush, with shoppers heading to major markets ahead of Diwali, added to the pressure on already congested roads, with commuters reporting slow-moving traffic and long queues at several busy intersections.
Traffic congestion was also reported at several points around central and north Delhi, including Inderlok, where commuters said vehicles remained virtually stationary for nearly half an hour at the traffic signal. At Teen Murti Marg and Kushak Road, motorists reported being stuck for around 20 minutes, while heavy congestion was also flagged at 11 Murti towards Dhaula Kuan.
The stretch from Tal Katora Road towards Shankar Road was reported to be heavily congested, with commuters seeking intervention from traffic personnel. Similar complaints emerged from the area around the Blind School, where a Diwali mela was underway. Commuters said traffic had slowed to a crawl, with long queues building up on adjoining roads.
At Modi Mill near Kalkaji, motorists reported more than 200 cars stuck in traffic for over 30 minutes, claiming that the congestion had become a daily occurrence, particularly during peak hours. Traffic snarls were also reported at Dwarka and East of Kailash.
Further north, commuters flagged severe congestion at Prerna Chowk near Keshav Puram and the road outside Keshav Puram Metro station, alleging that several stationary and improperly parked vehicles were contributing to the bottleneck.
Traffic was also reported to be crawling at Azadpur Flyover, while motorists complained of rampant wrong-side driving and violations of traffic rules.
In south Delhi, motorists flagged congestion outside Vasant Kunj police station, attributing it to a large number of vehicles parked outside the premises and a nearby traffic signal that allegedly compounded the bottleneck.
Complaints also emerged from Jasola, where commuters alleged that unauthorised parking had taken over stretches of the road, with traffic police personnel reportedly attributing the parking arrangements to permissions granted by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi.
At the Ghazipur border, the enforcement of restrictions on non-BS-VI vehicles entering Delhi added another layer to the traffic situation.
Vehicles entering from Uttar Pradesh were being checked by personnel, with traffic police identifying vehicles through their registration series and other vehicle details to ascertain their registration year and emission standard.
Visuals shared online showed vehicles navigating through severely congested stretches near Akshardham Temple amid dense fog and reduced visibility. Commuters also flagged traffic congestion at Inderlok, Pitampura, Keshav Puram and several other locations, seeking immediate intervention from the Delhi Traffic Police.
Commuters also sought additional traffic personnel and volunteers at major intersections, alleging that inadequate deployment and indiscriminate parking were worsening congestion during the festive rush. PTI MSJ MSJ MPL
MPL
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