Long-term measures needed to avoid traffic jams on Mumbai-Pune Expressway, says minister

Mumbai, Feb 4 (PTI) As a massive traffic snarl continued on the busy Mumbai-Pune Expressway even after 30 hours on Wednesday night, Maharashtra Minister of State for PWD Indranil Naik said long-term steps were necessary to avoid such situations.

A transport industry representative, on the other hand, said the situation exposed how ill-prepared the authorities were.

Talking to a Marathi news channel, minister Naik said he was in touch with Home and PWD secretaries to ensure that the traffic jam ended soon.

Traffic came to a standstill on the expressway after a gas tanker carrying propylene overturned near Adoshi tunnel at around 5 pm on Tuesday.

A probe will be conducted into the incident, the minister said, adding that long-term measures were needed so that such a situation does not occur again.

Bal Malkit Singh, advisor and former president of All India Motor Transport Congress (AIMTC), said the incident had once again exposed the lack of preparedness of the authorities to handle such situations.

The traffic jam has caused severe inconvenience to commuters and massive losses to the transport industry, he said in a release.

Despite paying heavy toll and multiple taxes, the transport fraternity continues to suffer due to inadequate infrastructure and poor emergency response mechanisms, Singh added. PTI MR KK KRK