What is up with Delhi traffic? Don’t worry, it is not just you, it is all of us wondering lately as Google Maps seems to have gone on red mode for the city and its adjoining areas with commuters being stuck in hours-long traffic jams amid the festive rush.
While Delhi is among the cities in India infamous for its traffic during particular hours of the day, the Diwali season keeps key roads choked almost entire day not just in the city but nearby cities of Uttar Pradesh’s Ghaziabad, Noida, Haryana’s Gurugram and Faridabad among others.
Traffic snarls persisted on Thursday as well with bumper-to-bumper chaos on key stretches such as Outer Ring Road and Ring Road in south Delhi, Mathura Road between Pragati Maidan and Badarpur border, Aurobindo Marg, Barapullah elevated road, Delhi Noida Direct (DND) Flyway, Delhi-Meerut Expressway, leading to Ghaziabad – replicating the scenes of Wednesday.
Social media platform X, formerly Twitter, was flooded with commuters writing about the choking traffic jams that prompted the Delhi Police on Thursday to cancel leaves of all traffic personnel to handle the situation.
“I’ve never seen traffic like this in Delhi! Been stuck in the same spot for over 2 hours nothing’s moving. Called 112 three-four times, but the call kept dropping and no one called back. What a mess! With the festival season ahead, this is pathetic planning by the authorities,” one user wrote on X.
Some people took to memes to express frustration over the traffic situation. “People in traffic jam during festivals in Delhi,” one user wrote on X, attaching a meme.
One user wondered how can all parts of Delhi be gridlocked during Diwali.
“How can there be traffic jams in all parts of Delhi during Diwali. This seems to be a conspiracy to trouble residents of Delhi/NCR. What are the police and traffic police doing about it? Utterly nonsense situation,” the user wrote on X.
Meanwhile, Delhi Police said that maximum deployment has been made across the city.
“Personnel on motorcycles have been deployed and leaves have been cancelled. We are fully prepared to manage the rush and ensure smoother movement in the coming days,” PTI news agency quoted Special Commissioner of Police (Traffic) Ajay Chaudhary.
