Pune / Mumbai: A tanker accident on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway on Tuesday led to massive traffic congestion, forcing the Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) to cancel 139 bus services and leaving hundreds of commuters stranded at major bus terminals in both cities.
According to the transport department, 73 e-Shivneri services and 66 other state transport bus trips were cancelled due to the prolonged gridlock following the accident. As many as 163 MSRTC buses were also stuck on the expressway for several hours. The affected buses included 46 from the Satara division, 36 from Solapur, 20 from Pune, 18 from Sangli, 13 from Kolhapur, 12 from Palghar, 11 from Thane and seven from the Mumbai division.
According to the operators, there are nearly 2,500 passengers who were stuck in these buses. “There are at least 400-500 buses that are stuck on the Expressway. We have stopped bus operations until situation improves,” said Harsh Kotak, member, Mumbai Bus Malak Chalak Sanghatana.
Pramodini Amin, one of the passengers stuck on the expressway said, “I boarded the bus from Mangalore on Tuesday at 11 am and this morning at 4 am, the bus came to a halt on the expressway. From morning till 6 pm, the bus travelled only 2 km.”
Another passenger too has bad experience during this time who too was stranded in a private bus. “I had gone to Jalna for personal work and on my way back, I got stuck before i reached the Expressway. My family was worried and i managed to inform them after i got down around Pune,” said R Adhe, resident of Mumbai.
The cancellations caused severe inconvenience to passengers, many of whom complained of a lack of timely information at bus depots. The MSRTC said passenger safety was its priority and that services would be restored in a phased manner once traffic on the expressway normalised, while several commuters questioned the lack of coordination and communication. They said the absence of timely announcements and basic facilities at bus stands worsened the disruption caused by the accident.
At Dadar bus station in Mumbai, passengers said they learnt about the cancellations only after long waits. Some were forced to abandon their journeys, while others made costly last-minute arrangements through private operators. “I had to return home after waiting nearly four hours. Important work had to be postponed,” said a commuter bound for Satara.
D.R. Patil, a resident of Belgavi who was coming to Mumbai said, “I left on Tuesday evening in a private bus which reached Pune around 4-5 am. Thankfully I was carrying power bank, charger that kept my phone running. I was also carrying food. However women, senior citizens and children travelling in the bus had to suffer as there was no provision of toilet facility or food”.
At Pune’s Swargate bus stand, commuters said they were made to wait for hours without clear announcements on cancellations or alternative arrangements.
“There was no clarity at all. We kept asking staff whether buses would depart, but no one had answers. Many of us have been waiting since morning without food or water,” said a commuter at Swargate travelling to Kolhapur.
“If the buses were cancelled, why wasn’t it announced clearly? People had elderly parents and children with them,” said another commuter.
Bal Malkit Singh, All India Motor Transport Congress (AIMTC) said the government needs to improve their services to tackle such exigencies. “We have been demanding for cranes and other paraphernalia for a long time. There must be at least 45-50000 trucks, tankers and trailers carrying perishable and non-perishable goods that will now reach with delays,” he said.