Dozens of large public vehicles stall on the roads regularly, causing jams, diversions

It is now common to come across social media posts by the Delhi Traffic Police urging people to steer clear of certain roads because of jams created by the breakdown of a bus in the National Capital. 

However, these reported incidents are a mere fraction of the actual number of daily breakdown of buses. Breakdown of buses and Medium Goods Vehicles (MGVs) has become a major cause of traffic snarls during peak hours in Delhi.

Sources in the transport department said that dozens of Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) and clusters scheme buses stall on the roads every day. The consequences of a bus breakdown are complex. It not only causes inconveniences to daily commuters who are stranded on the road but it also results in traffic congestion with the slow down and idling vehicles.

Traffic was  affected on Najafgarh-Bahadurgarh Road due to the breakdown of a Bus near Najafgarh Depot on Sunday. As per Delhi traffic police social media post, traffic was affected on Bahadurgarh Najafgarh Road due to accident and fire in Hyva Truck near Anaj Mandi, Najafgarh.

On Saturday,  traffic police posted two advisories on the breakdown of buses. The first breakdown took place on Najafgarh Road in the carriageway from Dholi Piao towards Dwarka Mor due to breakdown of a bus at Uttam Nagar Chowk, which led to slow down of movement. In the second incident, traffic was affected on Rohtak Road in the carriageway from Tikri border towards Peeragarhi due to breakdown of a Bus near metro pillar No 530.

According to traffic police social media posts on Friday, five incidents of breakdown of vehicles reported in the peak hours. Traffic was affected on Mathura Road in the carriageway from Ashram towards Badarpur due to breakdown of a Cluster bus near Sarita Vihar flyover. This is one of the busiest roads in Delhi that connects Delhi and Uttar Pradesh and Haryana.

In the second instance, traffic is affected on MGM (Ring Road) in the carriageway from AIIMS towards Moti Bagh due to breakdown of a truck at  Raj Nagar Flyover.

The third stretch was affected on MGM (Ring Road) near IG Stadium in the carriageway from Rajghat towards Sarai Kale Khan due to breakdown of an MGV at IP Flyover. In the fourth incident, traffic was affected on Mathura Road in the carriageway from Sarita Vihar towards Badarpur due to breakdown of a truck near Aali Village bus stand.

In the fifth incident, traffic was affected on Ring Road in the carriageway from Ashram Chowk towards Moolchand Underpass due to breakdown of an MGV at Moolchand Underpass. This stretch of Ring Road is considered one of the busiest in Delhi.

Similarly, four incidents of breakdown of vehicles was reported on traffic police social media posts on Thursday.  The traffic was affected on Ring Road in the carriageway from Raja Garden towards Delhi Cantt Metro Station  due to breakdown of an MGV on Naraina Flyover. The traffic was affected on Mathura Road in the carriageway from Okhla towards CRRI due to breakdown of an MGV near CRRI Red Light.

The traffic is affected on Noida link road  in the carriageway from Akshardham towards Chilla Border due to the flipped trolley loaded with straw, on the descending Akshardham flyover. This is one of the busiest roads in Delhi that connects Delhi and Uttar Pradesh.

There were among 50 breakdowns that disrupted traffic since last Friday, going by the Traffic Police’s social media posts. There were dozens of incidents of breakdown of buses which were not reported by the transport department and traffic police.

According to a traffic police official, it typically took around one hour to rectify the situation arising from a bus breakdown. In some instances, the resolution time exceeds two-three hours. Removing the broken down bus is a tedious task since they have hydraulic brake setups that can only be opened by expert mechanics. Since buses ply on long routes, the depots are generally at some distance from the breakdown spot and the arrival of the required mechanical personnel also takes time.

According to Delhi Traffic Police’s X handle, eight breakdowns disrupted traffic just on Monday. Four were reported on Tuesday. Three were reported on Wednesday.

Officials of Delhi transport department said one the top reasons for frequent breakdowns is age of the CNG run buses. Most of the buses have a lifespan of 15 years. In fact they are on extended life and this often means more breakdowns.