13,000 vehicles enter Shimla on New Year's Eve

Tribune News Service

Ambika Sharma

Solan, December 31

Himachal Pradesh witnessed a huge inflow of tourists on the New Year’s Eve with over 13,000 vehicles entering Shimla via Parwanoo.

Data with the Sanwara toll barrier showed 9,165 vehicles entered the state till noon and 13,006 by 5 pm. The number of holiday revellers registered a steep increase after 4 pm, forcing the administration to increase police presence for smooth traffic flow on the Kalka-Shimla highway.

The heavy tourist footfall has brought cheer to hoteliers, who are expecting over 90 per cent occupancy. Queues of vehicles were also seen on roads leading to popular tourist destinations like Kasauli and Chail throughout the day.

The traffic police faced difficulty in managing vehicular movement at Sanwara, Jabli, Barog and Dharampur, where visitors stop for a break. With little parking space available around eateries, tourists often park their vehicles along the highway, hindering traffic movement. “Shimla is a preferred tourist destination. To avert traffic jams, the highway has been divided into three sectors — Parwanoo-Barog, Barog-Kandaghat and Kandaghat-Shalaghat. We have deployed separate teams at these stretches to manage traffic,” said Virender Sharma, Solan SP.

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