Rain puts traffic out of gear

Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, July 14

Intermittent rain in the industrial hub today put the traffic out of gear. Several city areas witnessed huge traffic jams and traffic flow at some places literally came to a standstill.

City’s main intersections Jalandhar bypass, Dholewal Chowk, Sherpur Chowk, Haibowal Chowk and Hero Bakery Chowk witnessed heavy traffic jam.

Although the traffic police were deployed at city’s strategic places, due to the slow movement of traffic in the rain, they could not streamline it easily.

Waterlogging was seen at Dholewal Chowk to Sherpur Chowk due to which traffic moved at a snail’s pace.

Four-wheelers, including cars and commercial vehicles, were seen stuck on roads. “I was crossing from Sherpur Chowk and was to head towards Dholewal. My car broke down as its tyre got stuck inside a deep pothole. With the help of some commuters, I managed to take out my car out,” said Surinder Pal, a resident of the Dholewal Chowk area.

The condition of commuters on two-wheelers was worst. “Traffic police are here but they are helpless. If there is a big pit on the road, whether it’s a bike or four-wheeler, it will surely get stuck and the same happened to me. It is the failure of the Municipal Corporation, which failed to clear the waterlogged streets and also failed to fill the potholes. This is not the first time that roads are filled with rainwater. Every time this situation repeats and still the authorities are keeping their eyes shut,” a bike rider, Mandeep said.

Another reason due to which the traffic at Sherpur Chowk was going at a slow pace was the ongoing construction work of overbridge, which has been lying pending for years.