Congestion Points Choking Delhi Traffic

Article Published in Mail Today, April 11th, 2012

It was the first showers of this summer and while it brought relief, it also caused agony to thousands of commuters who got stranded in traffic snarls that lasted for more than an hour.

A combination of three weather systems resulted in Tuesday’s showers. The city woke up to a pleasant morning as several areas experienced light showers. Though the temperature rose during the day, darkness descended around 4.30 in the afternoon as a dust storm enveloped the city and surrounding areas and brought more showers.

But those on the streets had little to cheer about. People returning home from office got stuck in traffic snarls. Traffic police officials said the signals at some places went out of gear bringing traffic to a halt.

A lengthy queue was noticed at Panchkuian road as the traffic signal at Jhandewalan roundabout failed to work. Water- logging at Dhaula Kuan, Kashmere Gate, Minto Road and some other places were also reported, forcing traffic to move slowly.

Areas around Ashram, Connaught Place, South Extension, Hauz Khas, Vikaspuri and Sahadara also witnessed traffic snarls during the evening rush hour.

Abrupt rains also caused disruption at the Indira Gandhi International Airport. A DIAL spokesperson said several flights had to be diverted or delayed because of the sudden dust storm and showers.

“ A total of 18 flights were diverted and about 40 flights delayed because of the rains,” the spokesperson said.

The maximum temperature recorded on Tuesday was 37.8 degree Celsius — a degree below Monday’s high — while the minimum was 22.3 degrees. The met department said 4.2 millimetres of rainfall was recorded from 8.30am to 5.30pm.

Explaining the reason behind the showers, M. Doraisamy, a scientist at the India Meteorological Department, said: “ There is a cyclonic circulation over Haryana and neighbourhood which is spreading through Uttar Pradesh. There is another system in the form of western disturbance over north Pakistan and adjoining Jammu and Kashmir. The third system is the north- south trough from Chhattisgarh to south Tamil Nadu, across Telangana.” Together, they seem to be responsible for bringing some relief.