Nasty traffic jam in Tamil Nadu: Took 6 hours to cover 33 km

A few vehicles ran out of fuel & were pushed to the side of the road & occupants were trying to get into other vehicles.

BHPian irdevanand recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Hi all,

Got into a nasty traffic jam last night while returning to Chennai from Nagercoil. We crossed the last but oneth toll at 7.30 PM and the last 33 kms to my home took me 6 hours! Took a detour via Uthiramerur, etc. and then reached the last toll by 1.06 AM and reached home by 1.30.

The cause

The bridge right before the last toll was closed for traffic yesterday evening.

The 6-hour delay

You can see below from toll receipts that we crossed the Athur toll by 7.33 pm and then crossed the Paranur toll the next day at 1.06 AM.

The saving grace

Looking at the traffic pile up and the detour on Google maps, I called our office cab company and asked them for help. They sent two guys in a cab. The cab reached up to the other side of the bridge and one driver hitchhiked on a bike and crossed over to the other side of the bridge. By that time I had filled up petrol at the Uthiramerur HP bunk and waited for him. It was pure luck we refueled at that point. In that 6-hour jam, we saw a few vehicles run out of petrol and being pushed to the side of the road and occupants trying to get into other vehicles. Once our driver took over we caught some sleep and it was the only saving grace in an otherwise nasty problem.

Big big thanks to Sherman cab company and the acting driver Balaji. If you live on this side of the city (Guduvanchery area) then would recommend you to check them out for any cab needs.

The trip

My father-in-law was not well and after a lot of deliberation, we decided to bite the bullet and take the trip instead of flying or taking the train. Fewer chances of exposure. Mind you, we have not set our foot outside our apartment for nearly 2 years. My car has run around 1000 Kms or so in the last two years. Got the car serviced and then drove it from Chennai to Nagercoil and reached by 5.40 pm. The 100% FastTag tolls saved at least a couple of hours in the drive. Covid pushed the no-touch concept to 100%. That is one good thing that happened in covid, I guess. The guy who tries to scan your car with a manual scanner is gone now. We were pleasantly surprised to see we could reach home by 5.40 pm.

Though the return journey didn't go as planned, it's ok. God helped us at the right time. Now back to work after a long and much-deserved trip to my hometown after 2 years.

Here's what BHPian varunanb had to say about the matter:

It was a little better for me. Reached Mamandur Manoj Bhavan around 4 pm and by the time I reached the Paranur toll plaza, it was 8.15. Earlier that day, another bhpian was able to cross within an hour and a half. It got progressively bad to worse.

Hope the traffic eases when I next drive on the route this weekend.

Here's what BHPian searacer932 had to say about the matter:

Glad that you and your family reached home safely and you took a smart and sensible decision of calling a cab driver to assist.

However, the Palar bridge repair has been badly managed by NHAI. Surely they could have planned it better with sufficient notice to all the travelers. They have taken people for granted. I am not sure who is responsible for this mess - NHAI or the State Government. They should be taken to task.

Here's what BHPian thanixravindran had to say about the matter:

This is covered in yesterday's Times of India Newspaper. Here is the link. It seems the pain will be there for at least two months. Need to plan any travel carefully till then.

Here's what BHPian Gannu_1 had to say about the matter:

Mother of!

Dude, I cannot begin to imagine the pain you must have gone through! What a serious mess, man. Shows a total lack of planning by whoever is in charge. This route sees a heck of traffic during weekends.

I’ve shared this with some of my friends who frequently take this route. Thanks for sharing man.

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.