Pune, 25 August 2025: Traffic snarls have become a familiar sight in Pune during Ganesh festival, and this year the rush has started even before the celebrations. Over the weekend, long traffic jams were reported in the city as thousands of people thronged markets for festive shopping. The holiday crowd, coupled with ongoing pandal constructions and roadside encroachments, brought traffic in central areas to a crawl.
On Saturday and Sunday, shoppers packed busy markets, while pandal structures and makeshift stalls narrowed road space. Vehicles parked haphazardly worsened the situation, leaving commuters frustrated. In several stretches, motorists took 20 to 30 minutes to travel just half a kilometer.
Central Pune bore the worst of the chaos. Traffic on Shivaji Road, Bajirao Road, Jangli Maharaj Road, and Fergusson College (FC) Road slowed to a standstill, with connecting lanes also blocked by long queues of vehicles. The congestion stretched from areas near Shaniwarwada and Swargate to the Deccan and FC Road junctions.
The impact was not limited to the city’s core. Suburban markets in Katraj, Bibvewadi, Baner, Pashan, Kothrud, Karvenagar, and Hadapsar also witnessed similar jams as residents stepped out for last-minute festival shopping. At Mahatma Phule Mandai and Bohri Ali, dense crowds made it difficult even for two-wheelers to move.
Traffic police deployed additional personnel and introduced diversions, including one-way routes, but the sheer volume of vehicles and reduced road width due to pandals left them struggling to maintain flow. Authorities urged citizens to use alternate routes, yet congestion persisted throughout the day.
With festival preparations picking up pace, including idol bookings and final pandal setups, officials warn that the traffic situation may intensify further in the coming days. For now, the festive spirit in Pune is accompanied by the stress of navigating gridlocked roads.