Sankranti exodus causes massive traffic snarls

Hyderabad: Withthe conclusion of the Sankranti festival, massive traffic congestion was witnessed on the national highways as a large number of people, who had travelled to their native places—especially in Andhra Pradesh—for the celebrations, began their return journey on Sunday.

Long queues of vehicles were witnessed, causing severe inconvenience to commuters. Heavy rush was also reported at key toll plazas where vehicles were made to wait for hours. The National Highway 65, the Hyderabad – Vijayawada stretch triggered long bumper-to-bumper traffic across multiple stretches.

Traffic movement slowed significantly since early morning due to the surge in vehicles heading towards Hyderabad. Congestion was also reported at other places due to the heavy inflow of vehicles towards Hyderabad.

The heavy traffic from districts of Srikakulam, Visakhapatnam, East Godavari, West Godavari, Krishna and other districts headed back to Hyderabad and other parts of Telangana.

Traffic police and highway officials were seen making efforts to regulate vehicle movement and clear congestion at the affected stretch. However, due to the continuous inflow of vehicles returning after the Sankranti holidays, traffic remained heavy for most of the day.

Although educational institutions and government offices are scheduled to reopen on January 19 after the Sankranti holidays, many people had started their journey a day in advance to avoid congestion.

Authorities have advised commuters to plan travel during off-peak hours and follow traffic advisories to avoid inconvenience. The traffic situation is expected to remain tense over the next two days as the festive exodus continues.