City comes to a standstill

Chandigarh, August 21

The city came to a virtual standstill due to waterlogging that led to massive traffic jams across the city. Thousands of commuters, especially office-goers, ended up getting stuck in jams for over an hour. Traffic was thrown out of gear on stretches across the city, including Madhya Marg, Dakshin Marg and roads leading to Mohali.

While the waterlogged roads led to traffic jams, vehicles that broke down in the middle of the road added to the chaos. Motorists abandoning their vehicles and wading through knee-deep water was a common sight across the city.

The thin presence of traffic cops on intersections left commuters at the receiving end. The daily 20-minute drive from Zirakpur to Chandigarh stretched to over an hour. Commuters moving from one part of the city to another landed up in traffic snarls. Efforts to take alternative routes did not help much. Major traffic snarls were witnessed at the old Airport light point, the Hallo Majra light point, Tribune Chowk, the Sector 32/33/20/30 chowk, the Sector 34/33/20/21 chowk, the Housing Board light point, the Kalagram light point, the Transport light point, the Sector 26/27/7/19 roundabout, the Press light point, Sector 17, Matka Chowk and the Sector 22 Aroma light point.

Manjeet Singh, a city resident, said it took him almost two hours to reach Sector 34 from Sector 15.  Minor accidents were also reported on all major roads.  Accidents were reported from Dakshin Marg, Madhya Marg and various southern sectors. “Many two-wheeler riders also fell on the road after losing balance,” said a cop. — TNS