‘Sea of red lights’: Motorist stuck 5 hours in Chedda Nagar gridlock

The chaos that unfolded on Wednesday. Pics/By Special Arrangement

Andheri resident Kunal Chaudhari, who was stuck in traffic for five hours, told mid-day, "I departed from Marol around 5.30 pm on Wednesday, expecting a routine drive towards Pune. But what should have been a normal journey soon turned into a nightmare. By 6.15 pm, I had approached Chedda Nagar junction on the Ghatkopar-Mankhurd Link Road, near the Eastern Express Highway. From the signal itself, I could see an endless line of vehicles stuck on the Ghatkopar-Mankhurd flyover. Nothing was moving."

Realising the flyover was completely jammed, Chaudhari decided to use the road below instead. "But within minutes, I was trapped. After moving barely 100 metres, traffic came to a complete standstill. For the next four hours, my car was practically frozen in the same spot. In all that time, I barely moved another 100 metres," he said.

Kunal Chaudhari, Andheri resident

As hours passed, frustration turned into helplessness. "There were vehicles everywhere, all trapped in a sea of red lights. The most disturbing sight was ambulances stuck in the chaos, unable to move despite locals desperately trying to clear a path," he said.

Making matters worse, several motorists and even BEST buses began plying the wrong side, turning an already chaotic situation into complete madness. "After hours of waiting, I was lucky to spot a U-turn near the Kachra Depot road junction. Even so, it took another 45 to 50 minutes just to reach the Eastern Express Highway signal because vehicles from the opposite direction kept entering," he said.

Amid all this, locals were the real heroes. Young boys from the area stepped in to control traffic and guide stranded motorists, even helping ambulances navigate the chaos. There was hardly any visible police presence, perhaps because even they couldn't access the gridlocked stretch.

"Eventually, I gave up, returned home, and restarted my journey to Pune at 4.30 am on Thursday. By 5 am, the roads were finally clear. Had I taken the flyover, I honestly don't think I would have found a way out," he said.