Traffic horror persists in Delhi with heavy downpour across different parts of the national Capital and adjoining areas of Noida, Ghaziabad and Gurugram on Friday along with severe waterlogging, frequent breakdown of buses, potholes, unregulated traffic and tree falling which irked commuters as vehicles were seen moving at a snail pace on city’s road.
Delhi is deluged due to incessant rains since last night amid a complete collapse of civic infrastructure with disruptions of movement across the city. People complained about not being able to reach their work places due to waterlogging in different areas of the city including Mehrauli-Badarpur road, Mathura road, Sangam Vihar, Aurobindo Marg, Madhu Vihar road, Delhi Gate, Sainik Farms, India Gate, Janpath Road, Kalindi Kunj, Gazipur, Laxmi Nagar, MG road, Connaught Place, Safdarjung, Uttam Nagar, and Dhaula Kuan.
Resident Welfare Associations asked locals to be cautious of the traffic jams in the city including in Sainik Farms. However, they have proved to be no help to the residents who are reeling with nature’s fury, and getting stuck in traffic for hours.
A commuter Atul Jain expressed his displeasure with the authorities and said, “I have been stuck for more than half an hour now since Punjabi Bagh area is heavily damaged due to bridge construction and waterlogging. What frustrates me more is even though this has been an issue for days now, no authority is getting it repaired. Daily heavy traffic is affected due to this section.”
The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) received 24 calls regarding waterlogging and 14 related to tree falling from across the city. Another commuter Nitin Garg, who was going to his office, stated, “MB Road sewer is choked and the road is flooded with waterlogging due to which there is huge traffic jam. It’s so painstaking to travel from this stretch. Someone needs to solve this urgently and think about the well being of common citizens.”
The city is under a yellow alert, indicating adverse weather conditions and the potential for worsening conditions that could disrupt daily life. Exacerbating the traffic situation created due to waterlogging, potholes have also made the journey hard for Delhiites. “A pothole on Mukarba Chowk flyover from Prashant Vihar flyover is causing traffic jams,” a 40-year-old Manoj said. People added that due to the closure of side roads in Mahipalpur, the situation has worsened with increased traffic congestion in the area.
Breakdown of buses on Palam-Dwarka flyover, Bhairon Marg, Chattarpur, Mehrauli-Badarpur road and Ashram flyover among other areas also caused inconvenience making the jams in arterial junctions of the city worse.
Due to rains, the city’s primary weather station at Safdarjung recorded 29.6 mm of rainfall, while the Ridge station recorded 69.4 mm, Delhi University 56.5 mm, Lodhi Road 28.2 mm, Aya Nagar 19.5 mm and Palam 18 mm in the last 24 hours ending at 8. 30 am Friday, according to data shared by the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD).
Informing the public about traffic disruptions due to waterlogging, the police posted photos and videos and advised people to avoid affected areas and take alternate routes.
“Traffic is affected on NH-48 in the carriageway from Dhaula Kuan towards Mahipalpur due to water logging at GGR PDR. Kindly plan your journey accordingly,” the Delhi Traffic Police wrote in a post on X.
In several posts, the police also informed that traffic was affected on multiple roads, including Lala Lajpat Rai Marg in the carriageway from Kalkaji towards Defence Colony, Main Kanjhawla Road in the carriageway from Budh Vihar towards Puth Khurd, Outer Ring Road, Rohtak Road in the carriageway from Nangloi towards Tikri Border and vice versa.
The traffic was also affected on MB Road in the carriageway from Khanpur T-Point towards Mehrauli and vice versa as well as on Guru Teg Bahadur Road in both directions from Ring Road towards Patel Chest in front of Khalsa College.
Similarly, GTK Road experienced disruptions on both carriageways from Mukarba Chowk towards Azadpur Chowk and vice versa due to waterlogging near GTK Depot and Jahangirpuri Metro Station.
The Main Outer Ring Road saw traffic jams in the carriageway from Bhera Enclave Roundabout towards Peeragarhi, caused by waterlogging and an overflow of sewer water near Nagin Lake Apartments, Peeragarhi. “Kindly avoid Mundka and take an alternate route accordingly,” the police said.
