Festive rush, illegal parking choke roads along Noida Sector 18

A massive influx of shoppers on the occasion of Dhanteras on Friday and ahead of Diwali meant that the area in and around Noida’s bustling Sector 18 market saw serpentine jams nearly throughout the day

A massive influx of shoppers on the occasion of Dhanteras on Friday and ahead of Diwali meant that the area in and around Noida’s bustling Sector 18 market saw serpentine jams nearly throughout the day.

Noida (Sunil Ghosh /HT PHOTO)

Despite deployment of traffic personnel, unauthorised parking reduced a three-lane stretch to just one lane, resulting in long queues of vehicles and severe traffic congestion.

On Friday evening, substantial traffic volumes were reported on the stretch from Film City Flyover to Sector 18, roads adjoining DLF Mall, and the internal roads of the market. Besides, the road near Atta Market was also choked, with congestion extending to Sector 16 and other connecting roads.

When HT visited the spot, unauthorised parking in the market appeared to be as a major cause of congestion. Vehicles parked along the roads had consumed nearly the entire road, leaving barely a single lane for traffic to snake its way through resulting in long queues and affecting the movement of traffic on the main roads.

Traffic police officials said they had issued an advisory urging people to park their vehicles only in designated areas. “Challans will be issued against those violating traffic rules and causing congestion,” a traffic police official said.

On Wednesday, Noida traffic police also introduced diversions in Sector 18 and Atta Market ahead of Diwali and Dhanteras to manage the expected festive rush. As per the advisory, autos and e-rickshaws have been restricted from operating between Atta Market and Atta Peer. “If congestion increases, other vehicles will also be diverted via Film City underpass, DLF Mall and nearby sectors,” Noida Police said in a statement.

Nitin Jain, a commuter who had visited Sector 18 for shopping, said, “Traffic police personnel should issue challans against vehicles parked in unauthorised spaces. I have been stuck here for the past 30 minutes because another vehicle was parked on the road.”

Pramod Kumar, a biker, said, “To avoid congestion on the main road near DLF Mall, I took the route through Sector 18 market. However, the situation on the arterial roads was equally bad, with almost all roads choked.”

In the advisory, Noida police had said, “In view of the upcoming festivals, people visiting the main markets and shopping malls for shopping are advised not to park their vehicles on public roads to avoid traffic-related inconvenience. They should park their vehicles only in designated parking areas within the markets and shopping malls,” the police said.

Meanwhile, traffic congestion also worsened on Maharaja Agrasen Marg -- under the Noida Elevated Road -- which connects Sectors 61 and 18. Due to restrictions on the elevated road, traffic movement remained affected on roads connecting sectors 53, 33A, 25, 24 and 23.

Police said additional personnel had been deployed to manage the festive rush, while they also urged people to use public transport or cabs.