E-Paper
Passengers fume over constant traffic congestion on Pune-Mumbai expressway
Owing to poor infrastructure and operations at Pune airport people tend to take a flight from Mumbai
Travelling across the Pune Mumbai expressway has been a nightmare for many commuters nowadays, but it took Indraneel Chitale, partner, Chitale Bandhu Mithaiwale, more than 5 hours on May 26 following a hectic flight from Bangkok to Mumbai.
Owing to poor infrastructure and operations at Pune airport, Chitale chose to travel from Mumbai airport and then was stuck in traffic congestion on his way back to Pune.
It’s a similar situation for thousands of other travellers who avoid flying from Pune airport and then get delayed on the expressway.
“Flight Time from Bangkok to Mumbai - 4 hours. Driving time from Mumbai to Pune - Not known and it took 5.15 hours to reach home. The unfortunate reality that the key infrastructure between two most populous cities of Maharashtra hasn’t kept pace with time” tweeted Indraneel Chitale about his travel experience on May 26.
Talking about the inconvenience of travelling from the Pune airport and expressway he further said, “A non-functional Pune Airport, an overloaded e-way and Poor traffic management. No leadership on the ground to make any committed efforts for these issues.”
Another citizen Rakesh Dubey Tweeted, “I missed my flight to the USA once because a tanker burst on Pune-Mumbai Expressway causing a major blockage,”
Over the last several years, efforts have been made by the state government, MSRDC, and state highway police to curb accidents, improve infrastructure, and most importantly reduce travel time. Nonetheless, traffic jams on the Pune-Mumbai expressway are a common occurrence.
Many passengers still prefer to fly from the Mumbai airport due to the limited connectivity and poor facilities at the Pune airport.
