Shoppers bring traffic to standstill in Chandigarh

Markets in Sectors 19, 22, 35 and 36 were among the worst hit while traffic crawled along Madhya Marg, Dakshin Marg and the roads leading to Zirakpur

Heavy traffic congestion was reported across the city on Friday as shoppers thronged markets to buy gold and other metals on Dhanteras.

Traffic jam during Diwali festival at Sector 22 in Chandigarh on Friday. (Keshav Singh/HT)

Markets in Sectors 19, 22, 35 and 36 were among the worst hit while traffic crawled along Madhya Marg, Dakshin Marg and the roads leading to Zirakpur. The situation worsened in the afternoon during school closure hours. Evening congestion was also reported near Sectors 17, 19 and 22 as office-goers joined the festive rush.

Despite the deployment of traffic personnel at major intersections across the city, commuters faced long delays. A Sector 48 resident, Jasbir, said it took him more than an hour to cross the stretch between Ram Darbar and Hallomajra while travelling from Zirakpur on Friday afternoon. He, however, acknowledged that traffic police personnel were present at all intersections along the route.

Meanwhile, traffic police continued their crackdown on wrong parking, deploying around 10 towing vehicles across various markets to issue challans and remove illegally parked vehicles.

Senior traffic police officials urged residents to use the additional parking facilities opened at schools and colleges during the festive season. Chandigarh Beopar Mandal chairperson Charanjiv Singh said the mandal had been working with market associations to spread awareness about these additional parking spaces. Most of the school parking facilities remained largely vacant despite the congestion on nearby roads.