Delhi-NCR Traffic Jam: Raksha Bandhan Rush Causes Chaos

Raksha Bandhan Travel turned into a frustrating ordeal for thousands of commuters across Delhi-NCR on Thursday evening, as roads in Delhi, Noida, Ghaziabad and Gurgaon were overwhelmed by vehicles ahead of the festival.

With Raksha Bandhan falling on a Friday this year, many people appeared to be using the long weekend to travel to their hometowns or visit relatives. The additional festival traffic came on top of regular evening office-hour congestion, creating severe delays across several parts of the National Capital Region.

The Delhi-Meerut Expressway (DME) was among the stretches badly affected, with traffic moving slowly at multiple points. Videos shared online showed long lines of vehicles stretching across the expressway, while commuters posted about journeys that normally take a fraction of the time.

Delhi-Meerut Expressway sees major congestion

One of the reported trouble spots was near an exit on the Delhi-Meerut Expressway where an eight-lane stretch narrows to two lanes. The sudden reduction in road width, combined with vehicles converging near a turn, contributed to significant congestion.

Videos recorded from nearby residential buildings showed traffic backed up across the expressway.

X user Sunanda Acharya shared a video showing the congestion in Ghaziabad and described the festive travel rush as a “traffic nightmare”.

“Massive Traffic Jam in Ghaziabad! The Delhi–Meerut Expressway is packed with vehicles, leaving people stranded in heavy traffic during the festive rush.”

The situation highlighted how a major increase in traffic volume can quickly create bottlenecks when a broad expressway feeds into a substantially narrower section.

Gurgaon also struggles with festive traffic

Gurgaon experienced similar congestion as commuters headed out of the city ahead of the long weekend.

Bhupender Siwag posted videos and photographs from the city, saying traffic jams were being seen across Delhi, Noida, Gurgaon, Ghaziabad and Meerut.

“It feels like people aren’t leaving these cities for Raksha Bandhan this long weekend, but to escape these cities altogether!”

Siwag also said he was stuck near the Cyber City area for about 45 minutes.

Commuters report hours-long journeys

The scale of the congestion became particularly clear from accounts posted by commuters on Social Media.

One user claimed that the journey from Gurgaon to Meerut took eight hours, while another described Gurgaon as a day of “water logging, jams and what not”.

Other commuters pointed to the pressure created by private vehicles. One social media user argued that cars carrying only one or two passengers were occupying substantial road Space and cited inadequate public transport as part of the problem.

Another commuter reported spending three hours travelling from Terminal 2 of Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport to Akshardham.

These accounts varied by route and starting point, but collectively reflected the widespread frustration caused by the festive rush.

Bus stations also see a surge

The congestion was not limited to private vehicles. Crowds were also reported at bus stops across the region as people looked for public transport to reach their hometowns.

State roadways buses heading towards destinations including Agra, Aligarh, Bulandshahr, Ghaziabad, Mathura, Kanpur and Lucknow saw increased passenger demand as people travelled for Raksha Bandhan.

The surge in travellers came as many families prepared to celebrate the festival together after leaving Delhi-NCR ahead of the long weekend.

Why Delhi-NCR saw such heavy traffic

Several factors came together to intensify Thursday’s congestion. The approaching Raksha Bandhan holiday encouraged a large number of residents to leave the region at roughly the same time, while normal evening commuter traffic continued.

Road bottlenecks, including points where wider stretches narrow sharply, can further amplify delays when traffic volumes rise. Waterlogging reported in some areas added another complication for commuters.

The result was a chain of slow-moving traffic across several major NCR corridors, with delays spilling over onto connecting roads.

Raksha Bandhan travel turns into a traffic test

The pre-festival traffic chaos across Delhi-NCR showed the difficulty of handling a concentrated travel surge in one of India‘s busiest urban regions.

For commuters, the immediate priority was simply getting through the congestion and reaching family members in time for Raksha Bandhan. For those travelling longer distances, journeys that would normally take a few hours stretched substantially longer.

As more people left the National Capital Region for the holiday, Delhi, Gurgaon, Noida, Ghaziabad and the roads connecting them became the centre of a festive traffic gridlock that left commuters venting their frustration online.