The vehicular movement was stopped for more than an hour on Wednesday on the Pakhowal Road as a goods train stopped at the level-crossing owing to some technical problem. Hundreds of vehicles were stranded between Shastri Nagar and Model Town Extension.
Commuters had a harrowing time when a technical fault in the diesel engine of a goods train led to the closure of the railway crossing on the Pakhowal road. With the train coming to a halt, the watchman did not open the Shastri Nagar crossing till the mechanics reached the spot.
Talking to Hindustan Times, station superintendent Yaswant Singh said, "Moga-bound goods train departed from the Ludhiana railway station It's diesel engine developed a technical snag at 11.10am. After receiving the information, mechanics from the engine shed rushed to the spot to rectify the fault. After an hour, the goods train was taken to Baddowal."
Long queues of vehicles could be seen on both sides of the Pakhowal Road, which links Shastri Nagar and Model Town Extension. After the train halted at the Shastri Nagar railway crossing, the traffic lights at Pakhowal Road in front of the Hero Bakery become non-functional and left all the roads jammed.
Gaganpreet Singh, a resident of Pakhowal Road, said, "There is a need to have a railway over-bridge here as trains often face technical glitches that leads to traffic snarls on the road. The authorities should check the engine before the train starts as thousands of people were made to suffer for more than an hour."
{{/usCountry}}Gaganpreet Singh, a resident of Pakhowal Road, said, "There is a need to have a railway over-bridge here as trains often face technical glitches that leads to traffic snarls on the road. The authorities should check the engine before the train starts as thousands of people were made to suffer for more than an hour."
{{/usCountry}}Another commuter, Harish Kumar said, "I was going to Shastri Nagar for some work and got stuck in the traffic jam for more than an hour due to the closed railway crossing. This is not the first time that a train has stopped due to technical glitch. Earlier too, goods train halt here. The authorities must come up with an over-bridge here."