Festive season brings with it a share of fun and joy. But with it comes an add-on which we cannot ignore. Traffic jams! Even I spent a major part of the last few days stuck in traffic jams. These inadvertently leads to a lot of fuel being wasted. Any guess on where this year’s wastage stands at?
A report in ANI reveals the country wasted Rs 200 crores worth of fuel on the eve of Diwali! Delhi-NCR and Mumbai were clogged badly and so were cities like Kolkata, Pune, Bangalore, Ahmedabad and Hyderabad. The numbers have been revealed thanks to a study by Assocham. The Secretary General of Assocham, Mr DS Rawat added:
“With people who hardly travel by their own vehicle during rest of the year tend to take their vehicles to exchange Diwali greetings with their friends and relatives which as per a rough estimate push traffic volume [sic] by up to 25 percent.”
Encroachment of roads and parking spaces by shopkeepers is a major problem too. This further worsens the problem on roads. The pressure on roads continues to rise with erection of tents selling wares. City authorities did place traffic restrictions in busy areas but last minute shopping led to a big nightmare.
While traffic jams have been a problem during the festive season every year, the rise of social media and mobile applications like Google Maps with live traffic updates have been very helpful in searching for alternate routes. What about you guys? Did you also face trouble in commuting? Do remember to tell us about your experience below.
