Delhi and its neighbouring cities are facing unprecedented traffic snarls this Diwali season, leaving commuters frustrated and hours stuck on key roads. Google Maps has been showing heavy red alerts across the city and surrounding areas, signalling the worst congestion in recent times.
Traffic woes in Delhi NCR
While Delhi has long been notorious for peak-hour gridlocks, the festive rush has worsened the situation, causing major roads in Ghaziabad, Noida, Gurugram, and Faridabad to remain clogged for much of the day.
Thursday saw bumper-to-bumper traffic on stretches including Outer Ring Road, Ring Road in south Delhi, Mathura Road between Pragati Maidan and Badarpur border, Aurobindo Marg, Barapullah elevated road, Delhi Noida Direct (DND) Flyway, and Delhi-Meerut Expressway, mirroring the chaos witnessed on Wednesday.
Commuters vent frustration on social media
X (formerly Twitter) was flooded with posts from frustrated commuters, prompting Delhi Police to cancel leaves for traffic personnel to manage the situation.
“I’ve never seen traffic like this in Delhi! Been stuck in the same spot for over 2 hours nothing’s moving. Called 112 three-four times, but the call kept dropping and no one called back. What a mess! With the festival season ahead, this is pathetic planning by the authorities,” wrote one user.
Many expressed their annoyance through memes.
“People in traffic jam during festivals in Delhi,” read one meme post, capturing the collective frustration of the city.
Others questioned how the entire city could be paralysed simultaneously, “How can there be traffic jams in all parts of Delhi during Diwali. This seems to be a conspiracy to trouble residents of Delhi/NCR. What are the police and traffic police doing about it? Utterly nonsense situation,” another user tweeted.
Delhi Police responds
The authorities have assured residents that maximum deployment is in place to manage the festive rush.
"Personnel on motorcycles have been deployed and leaves have been cancelled. We are fully prepared to manage the rush and ensure smoother movement in the coming days," PTI quoted Special Commissioner of Police (Traffic) Ajay Chaudhary.