During the long holiday period, the number of vehicles sharply increased on the main mountain routes of Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh. A situation with severe traffic jams developed on the Joshimath-Badrinath route. Long queues of cars formed within a radius of approximately 7-9 kilometers from Joshimath to Vishnuprayag.
Due to the large concentration of people heading to Badrinath and Hemkund Sahib from early morning, the speed of movement in this area became extremely low. Local residents, tourists, and pilgrims traveling towards Joshimath are forced to spend hours in traffic jams. Although the situation sometimes improves after noon, the cars soon stop again.
Constant queues are observed from the Marwari bridge to Baldaud in Vishnuprayag. By evening, the picture of traffic jams becomes even more pronounced: hundreds of headlights illuminate the road in the dark, turning the entire journey into a glowing landscape reminiscent of Diwali. The pressure on traffic did not ease day or night; some cars moved slowly, while others were stuck on the road.
The main reason for the traffic jams on the section from Joshimath to Marwari is cited as the untimely completion of road widening works. A journey that usually takes about half an hour is now stretched to two or three hours. The prolonged presence of vehicles in one place causes constant anxiety among passengers. Many pilgrims stuck in traffic reported that women and elderly people were in their cars, experiencing fatigue and discomfort due to the many hours of waiting on the road. Some passengers noted that they had encountered similar congestion when traveling to Joshimath, and the same situation occurred on the return journey.
Photos show that the section from Joshimath to Baldaud, about 4-5 kilometers long, is filled with cars. In the distance, only endless rows of cars and their lights are visible. The increase in travelers due to the start of the long holidays has significantly intensified traffic pressure.
The traffic jam situation also worsened on the Kalika-Shimla National Highway in Himachal Pradesh. Tourists were met with the problem of heavy congestion. On Friday, tourists spent many hours in traffic jams. Endless rows of vehicles were visible on the road. The journey from Kalika to Shimla, which usually takes between three and four hours, took many hours on Friday. Cars moved very slowly, and passengers sweated in the heat and humidity. The traffic jams affected not only tourists but also the movement of local residents and vehicles providing necessary services.
Thanks to the public holidays on October 2nd, the weekend of Saturday and Sunday attracted a large number of tourists on Friday. The large number of arriving vehicles exceeded the highway's capacity. The administration deployed traffic police officers in various locations, but due to the huge volume of traffic, restoring normal movement requires time.
The traffic situation on the two main mountain routes caused concern among local residents and travelers. On the Joshimath-Badrinath route, people are questioning the administration about why sufficient measures were not taken to accommodate the large number of travelers during the travel season and holidays. On the Joshimath route, movement is difficult due to unfinished road widening work, and on the Shimla highway, the pressure is increasing due to more vehicles than the road can handle. Police and administration continue attempts to regulate traffic in both places, but due to the large number of vehicles, the speed is not recovering.
Currently, the long holidays for travelers to the mountains have turned into traffic jams. Whether it is a long queue from Joshimath to Vishnuprayag or cars standing for many kilometers on the Kalika-Shimla highway, people have to wait for hours. Local residents and tourists await the normalization of the traffic situation.