less than 12 hours after the Gwalior bypass was closed for repairs to a segment of the Road over Bridge (ROB) near Rayru, and despite the traffic police putting up barricades to divert traffic, the citizens of the city, especially those in Gole Ka Mandir, Maharajapura and Birla Nagar faced severe traffic congestion on Wednesday.
The entry point to the city at near Rayru junction was gridlocked for hours, leading to heavy traffic congestions in almost all the surrounding areas. Normal commuting was thrown out of gear as heavy rains lashing the city too contributed its bit to the misery of the people. Severe water logging, traffic snarls and pothole-riddled roads greeted the citizens on Wednesday morning.
The repair works in the RoB began on Tuesday and according to sources will take more than 7 days to complete.
Heavy vehicles coming from Agra-Delhi side and going to Jhansi-Mumbai direction have been diverted towards IIITM, Birla Nagar Bridge and GoleKeMandir. The entry of heavy vehicles during non-stipulated hours is creating havoc with the traffic in these areas. Around 4000 vehicles pass through Gole Ka Mandir every hour, and the addition of about 2500 to 3000 heavy vehicles is causing substantial traffic jams.
The worst affected were the school going children as many prestigious schools are located in the DD Nagar and Maharajapura areas which lie along the traffic diverted route. A number of buses and school vans which carry school children got stuck in the traffic jam, and the children could not reach homes till late in the afternoon.
Many commuters who were unaware that repair works on the bypass had begun were caught in the jam and had to find alternate routes to reach their destinations.
Speaking to the media persons, Manoj Sharma, Project Director, National Highways Authority of India said that a construction company has been entrusted with the maintenance of the road, and that during inspection it was found that a portion of the road on the bridge is fragmented and needs repair. He added that it could take up to seven days to complete the repair works.