Traffic jam on highway pesters drivers, passengers

Heavy traffic jam on Jammu Srinagar National Highway today stunted the movement of goods-laden vehicles with drivers and commuters blaming the traffic police for the mess.

Hundreds of apple-laden vehicles from Srinagar, on their way to Jammu and other fruit markets of the country remained stuck in the jam along Ramban to Nashri stretches on the highway.

   

The drivers alleged that the traffic police concerned were responsible for the mess on the road.

“The government has ordered one-way traffic only on the highway, but this order remains only on papers. The traffic is being allowed from opposite directions which causes jam,” a truck driver who was stuck in the jam at Ramban, told Greater Kashmir.

He said that he had crossed the Jawahar tunnel while coming from Srinagar at 9am. “Now it is 7pm and I am still in Ramban,” he said.

Due to the traffic jam hundreds of vehicles were stuck from Banihal to Ramban and Ramban to Nashri.

However, the traffic police officials attributed the traffic jam to the seasonal migration of nomads with their livestock along the highway, road works carried on at several places on the highway, and violation by light motor vehicles.

A traffic officer who was seen regulating traffic at Mehar, Ramban said that due to execution four-lane project works, the highway from Ramban to Banihal and Ramban to Nashri has shrunken at many places.

Sources said that late in the afternoon when this report was filed, army vehicles and apple-loaded vehicles were crossing Ramsu-Ramban and Ramban-Nashri stretches towards Jammu at a snail’s pace.

Meanwhile, traffic police headquarter Srinagar issued a traffic plan stating that Light Motor Vehicles, both commercial and private, and heavy and medium load carriers stopped at Nagrota and Jakhani Dhar Road, Udhampur, will be allowed to move towards Kashmir on Monday.

Cut off timings for LMVs from Nagrota, Jammu has been fixed at 7am to 11am and from Jakhani, Udhampur at 8am to 12 pm.

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