Asean meet triggers traffic chaos in Delhi

The two-day Asean summit that Delhi hosted turned into a nightmare for the Capital’s commuters on Friday with VIP movements triggering three to four-hour traffic snarls.

The two-day Asean summit that Delhi hosted turned into a nightmare for the Capital’s commuters on Friday with VIP movements triggering three to four-hour traffic snarls.

HT Image

Traffic personnel closed down stretches of Sardar Patel Marg and other major arterial roads in central Delhi leading to Vigyan Bhawan, the venue, as well as hotels on SP Marg where the visiting dignitaries are staying.

As the ripple effect of the traffic mess was felt almost everywhere in Lutyens’ Delhi, the fiasco has now raised doubts about the city’s ability to host international events of this scale.

"I had a meeting at Connaught Place. But because traffic was blocked ahead of the Dhaula Kuan junction, I was stuck for over two hours and finally called it off," said Gurgaon resident Ajoy Chowdhury, who heads an IT firm. “Closing busy roads for smooth VIP movement is primitive traffic management. They should ferry VIPs by air," said PK Sikdar, former director, Central Road Research Institute.

The other option is to shift such venues to places with thin traffic movement, said KK Kapila, chairman, International Road Federation.