Delhi: Traffic mayhem as commuters look to get home before night curfew

A senior Delhi traffic police official said that though the curfew starts at 10 pm, many stretches and crossings in the city have seen snarls since the evening, with many residents looking to return home well before the restrictions, with the Capital, Noida, and Ghaziabad all under a curfew between 10pm and 5am.

Roads around Delhi’s borders were packed with vehicles on Friday evening as commuters tried to cross over to Noida, Ghaziabad and Gurugram before the night curfew kicked in at 10pm. Delhi traffic police officials said checkpoints in the city and at its border points had a knock-on effect and slowed movement down in several parts of Delhi, leading to serpentine snarls.

Police personnel checking commuters for documents and passes near India Gate during a night curfew in the city amid a rise in Covid-19 cases, in New Delhi (Raj K Raj/HT Photo)

A senior Delhi traffic police official said that though the curfew starts at 10 pm, many stretches and crossings in the city have seen snarls since the evening, with many residents looking to return home well before the restrictions, with the Capital, Noida, and Ghaziabad all under a curfew between 10pm and 5am. Gurugram, meanwhile, has banned the entry of private vehicles into the city after 10pm.

“Till 7pm, we had already received 43 calls from commuters reporting the long wait at the borders. In order to be able to cross the borders before time, many vehicles swarmed the borders from around 6pm, which has led to the chaos at the borders. The traffic situation was under control till Wednesday, but Noida and Ghaziabad also imposed night curfews on Thursday and the checkpoints at borders are causing traffic jams in the Delhi side,” the traffic official said.

The Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) on Tuesday imposed the night curfew in the Capital till April 30, restricting all movement, except for people involved in essential services, in cases of medical emergency, for Covid-19 vaccinations, and for travel to and from the airport, railway stations, and bus terminals.

Delhi traffic police control room recordings show that on Friday long traffic snarls were witnessed around Delhi-Noida-Direct (DND) Flyway, Noida Link Road, Chilla Border, Kalindi Kunj bridge, Anand Vihar, Ghazipur border, Vikas Marg, Dhaula Kuan, Rao Tula Ram Marg, Airport Road, Dwarka Road, Ashram intersection, Jasola Vihar and Delhi-Gurugram Expressway.

Traffic officials said that jams are expected to intensify as more barricades will be placed across the city to check vehicles after the 10pm deadline.

Love Kumar, additional commissioner (law and order), Noida, said all vehicles entering the UP city are being stopped at the borders and drivers are being asked the reason for their movement.

“After 10pm, all drivers will have to state the reason for travelling during the curfew hours. We are allowing them to enter Noida only if we find their reason for commute to be satisfactory. Many people were not aware of the night curfew yesterday (Thursday) but from today (Friday) the restrictions will be imposed more strictly,” said Kumar.

Commuters, however, said that the administrations seemed unprepared to handle the curfew, which was causing these long traffic jams.

Rohan Kataria, who travels from Noida to Delhi for work, said that his shift gets over by 10pm. On Thursday, the transit from Noida to Delhi was smooth, but his colleagues have warned him of heavy barricading and checking on Friday.

“Everyone does not have a 9-5 job where they can get free from work and be home before 10pm. If the administration is planning such restrictions then people like us should be given some consideration. The system should be better prepared to manage such curfews, so that people are not inconvenienced,” said Kataria.

Many commuters also narrate their woes after getting caught in the traffic on Friday.

Shiv Raj Kathal, a Twitter user, tweeted at 7.10pm, “Stuck near Hauz Khas for the last 2hrs, crossed two barricades even though the curfew has not even started. Traffic is inching at snail’s pace (sic).”