Commuters deal with early morning traffic as experts remove crane from e-way

A hydraulic machine, which caught fire on the airport-bound carriageway of the Delhi-Gurugram Expressway just before the Indira Gandhi International Airport’s Terminal 3 on Saturday and caused many people travelling from Gurugram to miss their flights, was removed from the stretch on Sunday after a gap of 26 hours, much to the inconvenience of commuters, especially those who were using the road early morning

A hydraulic machine, which caught fire on the airport-bound carriageway of the Delhi-Gurugram Expressway just before the Indira Gandhi International Airport’s Terminal 3 on Saturday and caused many people travelling from Gurugram to miss their flights, was removed from the stretch on Sunday after a gap of 26 hours, much to the inconvenience of commuters, especially those who were using the road early morning.

Commuters deal with early morning traffic as experts remove crane from e-way

The process of removing the crane led vehicles to pile up on the expressway, resulting in slow movement of traffic for nearly two hours.

Police said engineers were called from Mumbai to repair and change the tyres of the crane so that it could be moved. The vehicles plying on the expressway could hardly move; the traffic movement was slow from 6am to 8am, till the crane was removed

Commissioner of Gurugram police Kala Ramachandran said due to the breakdown of the heavy-duty crane, which eventually caught fire around 6am on Saturday on the NH-48, there was a major traffic congestion on the expressway (Gurugram to Delhi side) on Saturday. “New tyres were fixed, but due to jammed steering, it took time to remove the vehicle with the help of technicians. The crane was removed around 8am,” she said.

Gurugram police had planned alternate routes for the vehicles to ensure there is smooth traffic movement and commuters do not face any inconvenience, said officials.

Vibhore Singh, a resident of Meerut in Uttar Pradesh, said he was living at a relative’s place in Sector 56 for three days and had to attend meetings in Delhi on Saturday and Sunday. He said after he missed his meeting on Saturday, he checked into a hotel in Delhi and returned to Gurugram on Sunday evening. “I returned to Gurugram around 6pm on Sunday and it was a smooth ride. There was police deployment on the stretch but there was no traffic congestion,” he said.

Naysa Gupta, a Class 12 student who had to attend her special classes at a coaching centre, was stuck for a few minutes on the stretch on Sunday. “The vehicular movement was slow as the team of police and technicians were in the process of removing the crane. After Mahipalpur, there was no snarl till Karol Bagh,” she said.

Regular commuters travelling between Delhi and Gurugram said the stretch has always been a problem area and something or other keeps happening on the expressway. leading to traffic snarls.

“The stretch is known for traffic jams and congestion. Due to such traffic snarls, people miss their flights, trains and important meetings. I and my wife missed our flight on Saturday as we were stuck on our way to the airport for three hours. This stretch is a pain for daily commuters and nothing has changed in the last few years, “ said Anupam Nagalia, a senior executive of a real estate firm.

Gurugram police has deployed traffic personnel on the borders and intersections round the clock to ensure there is no breakdown of any vehicle, said police.