Pune traffic chaos has intensified across several arterial roads after the traffic police suspended routine challan and towing operations, with commuters reporting longer journeys, widespread parking violations and limited traffic regulation at key junctions over the past two days.
JM Road, FC Road, Satara Road, Sinhagad Road, Alandi Road and stretches of the old city have reported repeated congestion. Motorists have been seen parking vehicles indiscriminately, riding triple-seat on two-wheelers, driving on the wrong side and violating one-way and no-entry restrictions. At some junctions, citizens have stepped in to manage vehicular movement as traffic personnel were not visible.
Deputy commissioner of police (Traffic) Sandip Bhajibhakare attributed the disruption to multiple factors, including increased heavy-vehicle movement near Market Yard, the old parts of the city and Ganeshkhind Road. He said festival-market activity and infrastructure projects had added to the pressure on roads.
“Vehicular movement on Satara Road, Karve Road, JM Road and other arterial roads has been disrupted for various reasons over the past few days. Movement of heavy vehicles in Market Yard, the old parts of the city and on Ganeshkhind Road has increased because of the festival market and infrastructure projects, disrupting traffic,” Bhajibhakare said.
The traffic department has also confirmed that challan machines used by field personnel were withdrawn around two months ago after irregularities were detected in the functioning of traffic police personnel. The department has suspended the use of towing vans as well, preventing officers from removing vehicles parked in no-parking zones or positioned in ways that obstruct traffic flow.
“We cannot pick up vehicles parked in no-parking areas and also haphazardly parked vehicles, which generally block the traffic flow,” Bhajibhakare said.
According to traffic police sources, officers are currently expected to rely on CCTV cameras and the Pune traffic police app for enforcement. A traffic police officer told the Times of India that personnel were not permitted to take action through the usual process and that online enforcement did not deter motorists in the same way as immediate action on the road.
The enforcement gap has had a direct effect on daily travel. Sunil Pandit, a resident of Satara Road, said his journey to work had increased from 15 to 20 minutes earlier to around 30 minutes because of continuous congestion. Sagar More of Sinhagad Road said he rarely saw traffic constables managing junctions or roads amid the worsening jams.
Bhajibhakare said traffic constables were managing vehicular movement at important junctions and that their presence would soon be enhanced on other roads. The department’s next stated steps are to increase personnel deployment and continue technology-based action while the regular challan and towing systems remain suspended.
