Commuters in Okhla faced severe traffic congestion on Tuesday after a vehicle broke down during rainy weather on Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar Marg. According to an auto driver, traffic snarls stretched from Julena red light to Holy Family Hospital, disrupting movement during peak hours.
Residents said the taxi broke down near the same spot where the road had recently caved in a few days ago. One local resident reported that the vehicle’s axle had snapped, leaving it stranded in the middle of the road.
The breakdown caused a massive traffic jam, forcing residents to intervene. With considerable effort, some residents managed to move the stranded taxi, clearing the way for a Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) bus that had been stuck behind it easing the traffic.
Syed Wasi, who was returning from work, said he and several others waiting in the long queue of vehicles finally breathed a sigh of relief when the road was cleared within minutes. “When I first heard about the vehicle breakdown, I lost hope. I even decided to walk towards Batla House or Jamia Gate to catch an e-rickshaw or some other transport to reach home,” he said.
Just then, a local resident came with the good news that the taxi had been moved. “Many people had given up waiting, thinking it would take hours for a crane to arrive. Some passengers got off the bus and started walking to their destinations, while bikers and other commuters were stuck, hoping the jam would clear soon,” Wasi added.
Traffic jams remain a persistent problem for Okhla residents, particularly in the Jamia Nagar area. Locals lament that whether it’s raining or not, or even on a relatively lean day, there’s no telling when one might get stuck in a traffic snarl.
“A few points in Okhla are chronic bottlenecks, and unless these spots are properly manned, the situation won’t improve,” said a resident.
Anwar, another commuter, acknowledged some improvement in Batla House after Okhla MLA Amanatullah Khan’s team deployed workers to manage the roads. However, he pointed out that the biggest menace is wrong-side driving. “It’s not just in Batla House but also at Okhla Head where careless bikers, in their rush to reach their destination, take the wrong side of the road and create chaos,” he said.
Anwar added that without adequate traffic police deployment in the area, the issue persists. “The administration needs to crack down on such violations and penalise those who flout traffic rules. Until then, these jams will keep troubling residents,” he remarked.
Activist Saghir Abbasi, who along with his team manages traffic during Ramzan, expressed deep concern over the growing menace of wrong-side driving by bikers. “This reckless habit causes unnecessary hardship to countless residents and often leads to severe traffic snarls,” he said.
Abbasi added that convincing these bikers is no easy task. “Many of them refuse to listen when we politely request them to follow the rules. It’s only when we take a firm stand that they reluctantly agree,” he shared, recalling his experiences of managing traffic during the busy festive season.
