Commuting between the suburbs and the city in the early part of Sunday was a hellish experience for most commuters.
Commuting between the suburbs and the city in the early part of Sunday was a hellish experience for most commuters as heavy showers caused water logging on important stretches of roads and suburban railway tracks, thereby affecting vehicular movement.
The usual water-logging-prone sections of the city were overwhelmed with excess water during the early part of the day and forced many who had made plans to enjoy a Sunday outing with family or attend office to stay indoors.
Another factor that contributed to traffic jams on roads was the numerous processions for Ganapati idols. Devotees were found moving in large groups slowly and cautiously with giant Ganapati idols in tow, occupying large road space and slowing down movement of other vehicles.
A bus conductor said, "Since morning, it has been difficult to move fast on the streets and keep up with the schedule since we had to tackle several traffic jams. This was the case especially in the island city. The suburbs were relatively better."
According to the traffic police, Hindmata junction, Gandhi Market, Sion Road no 24, Cadbury Junction, Parel TT, Khar subway and Andheri Milan subway were the most affected by water logging.
The western railway (WR) line, on which a mega block was implemented for maintenance work between Churchgate and Mumbai Central stations, saw a delay of about 15-20 minutes in the early part of the day as all services to Churchgate were diverted on the fast corridor.
The scheduled special traffic block between Saphale and Vaitarna was not implemented due to heavy rains.
The central railway (CR) line was impacted much worse as there were comparatively more service blocks and instances of water logging on the suburban network.
Water logging at Sion and Masjid Bunder ensured suburban services crawled throughout the day on the harbour and main lines.
According to BEST's official spokesperson, of the 3,072 buses which were supposed to be operating, only 2,875 were on the streets.
The buses suffered delays due to traffic and water logging too but as it turned out, they proved relatively more reliable than buses for the commuters. By evening though, the commuting situation had considerably improved.
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