Pune: Commuters Face Traffic Chaos As Metro Construction Sparks Road Closures Near University Chowk
Pune: Commuters Face Traffic Chaos As Metro Construction Sparks Road Closures Near University Chowk ( Representational Image )
Pune, November 29, 2024: Commuters in Pune faced a harrowing time on Thursday morning as traffic snarls stretched for kilometers due to road closures for Metro construction. The chaos was particularly severe near University Chowk, with jams stretching up to Abhimanshree Society Chowk on Baner Road and Abil House Chowk.
The route has been troublesome for months now, but commuters said congestion worsened in the last two days because of metro construction, which ended up narrowing the carriageway width from Yashada to University Chowk.
To make matters worse, the police unexpectedly closed the road near Abil House, towards E-Square, triggering massive traffic chaos. Relief came only after the cops reopened the road later in the morning.
“It was a horrible situation,” said Savitri Sehgal resident of Baner-Pashan Link Road. “I had left for my office on Prabhat Road around 9:15 am, only to find Baner Road jam-packed till the U-turn after Cosmos Bank. PMC and traffic police need to coordinate better. The road has narrowed due to Metro work.”
Another commuter, Navdeep Singh, said it took him an hour to reach University Chowk from Abhimanshree Society Road around 10:15 am, a distance of just a couple of kilometers.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (Traffic) Amol Zende said while talking to the media that the road closures were indeed part of trials before more Metro work along the route. Starting Friday, Zende said diversions would be put in place in front of RBI office, for girder work. Major traffic adjustments will also be made from Vidyapeeth Chowk to Shivajinagar via Ganeshkhind Road, with all vehicle movement restricted on certain stretches.
To mitigate the chaos, the traffic police have announced a set of diversions and closures for ongoing Metro work in Shivajinagar. Commuters are advised to check the traffic updates before embarking on their journey.
In a bid to ease congestion, no-parking zones have been enforced on key stretches, including the Range Hills Corner, Symphony Chowk, and Agriculture College Road.
