Raksha Bandhan Rush Spoils Traffic Math: Delhi to Meerut Choked, Long Queues From DME to NH-09

Delhi-NCR Traffic: Raksha Bandhan travel turned into a major traffic headache across Ghaziabad and the Delhi-Meerut corridor. On Thursday evening, a sharp rise in festival traffic combined with the regular office-hour rush, leaving vehicles crawling on the Delhi-Meerut Expressway (DME), NH-09 and several major city roads.

DME Turned Into a Parking Lot

One of the worst-affected stretches was the Delhi-Meerut Expressway, where long queues of vehicles were reported.

A major bottleneck developed near a DME exit where traffic moving from an eight-lane section narrows to just two lanes. As a large number of vehicles reached the narrower section simultaneously, traffic slowed sharply and queues began extending backwards.

Reports on Friday morning said some commuters faced delays of several hours, with traffic crawling for kilometres on parts of the expressway.

NH-09 Also Under Pressure

The congestion wasn’t limited to the expressway.

Traffic moved slowly on NH-09 between Dasna and Mehrauli Cut, while heavy pressure was also reported around Lal Kuan, GT Road, Ambedkar Road and Meerut Tiraha.

Traffic diversions introduced ahead of the festival also shifted some vehicles onto alternative routes, increasing pressure at several junctions.

Festival Travel and Office Rush Collided

The traffic situation became particularly difficult because two separate flows of vehicles came together.

People were leaving Delhi-NCR to meet relatives and travel home for Raksha Bandhan, while office-goers were simultaneously returning home during the evening rush.

The combination pushed vehicle volumes well above normal levels on already busy roads.

Traffic Police Worked to Control the Situation

Traffic police teams were deployed at key intersections and attempted to regulate vehicle movement. Diversions were also used at some locations where congestion became severe.

Authorities had already introduced restrictions on certain heavy and commercial vehicles on NH-09 from August 26 to August 28 in anticipation of the festival rush.

However, the sheer volume of festival traffic meant that congestion remained a challenge on several routes.

Commuters Faced Long Delays

The traffic chaos affected people travelling between Delhi, Ghaziabad, Noida and Meerut, with commuters reporting long waits and slow-moving traffic.

The situation was particularly frustrating for those who had planned their journeys around the Raksha Bandhan holiday, only to spend hours stuck on the road.

The Bottom Line

The Raksha Bandhan rush exposed the pressure points of the Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut road network, with the DME, NH-09 and several city roads struggling to handle the sudden surge in vehicles.

The eight-lane-to-two-lane bottleneck on the DME exit became a major choke point, while festival travellers and office commuters arriving on the roads at the same time made the situation even worse.