Traffic has been thrown into chaos in parts of east Delhi, southeast Delhi on Tuesday – and is expected to remain severely affected this week – due to emergency repair work on a damaged Delhi Jal Board (DJB) pipeline near Ashram Chowk.
While an advisory was issued by the Delhi Traffic police on Monday night, on-ground arrangements on Tuesday reflect poor coordination, and a continued lack of police presence to manage traffic.
Hour-long snarls dominated a major part of the city, as commuters helplessly complained on social media – only to be met with tepid responses by the traffic police, and with little to no help to ease the multiple bottlenecks that people encountered.
According to the Delhi traffic police advisory, due to the repair work, the Ring Road stretch between Maharani Bagh and Ashram will remain closed for the next three to four days.
According to the advisory, traffic will remain impacted on the Ring Road stretch from Sarai Kale Khan towards Ashram Chowk; the Ring Road stretch from DND Flyway towards Ashram Chowk; and traffic merging from CV Raman Marg onto Ring Road – essentially impacting all commuters travelling towards Ashram Chowk, Faridabad, Noida, and adjoining areas.
Tuesday morning and afternoon reiterated the lack of preparedness of the Delhi Traffic police to tackle peak hour and non-peak hour traffic due to civic repairs, and a general unwillingness of different departments to coordinate and assess the impact of something as simple and important as a pipeline repair.
{{/usCountry}}Tuesday morning and afternoon reiterated the lack of preparedness of the Delhi Traffic police to tackle peak hour and non-peak hour traffic due to civic repairs, and a general unwillingness of different departments to coordinate and assess the impact of something as simple and important as a pipeline repair.
{{/usCountry}}Also Read:Delhi traffic alert: Ashram Chowk-Ring Road stretch shut for 4 days, massive jams near DND
In the advisory, the police had said that the DJB pipeline, with 1,200 mm diameter, was damaged and is now being repaired.
Suggested Alternate Routes
For traffic from Sarai Kale Khan, ITO, DND Noida and Mayur Vihar towards Faridabad, motorists have been advised to use the Ashram Flyover, take a left turn towards Captain Gaur Marg and proceed via Okhla Mandi Road, Modi Mill Flyover and Mathura Road.
For traffic from DND Flyway towards Ashram, motorists are advised to use Barapullah Elevated Corridor or use Ashram Flyover.
Traffic coming from CV Raman Marg towards Ring Road has been directed to take Mata Mandir Marg and Mathura Road to reach the destination.
A commuter told HT that a two-km stretch – from Eastern Avenue turning into Maharani Bagh till Mata Mandir in New Friends Colony – took over two hours to cover. “An ambulance was stuck, people got out of their cars and just decided to walk. There was barely any police presence, and even the few police personnel who were there had no idea what to do,” said a 34-year-old commuter.
A senior police officer said “We have used Okhla Mandi Road and Barapullah as diversions. However, since the traffic has been affected during peak hours, we have deployed more traffic personnel around Ashram and DND to help commuters. Mathura Road is also open. For today, traffic will be cleared by 3pm to 4pm.”
There was, however, little clarity as to why extra deployment wasn’t already done.