NCP (Sharad Pawar faction) MP Supriya Sule was among hundreds of travellers caught in a major traffic jam on the Yashwantrao Chavan Expressway on Friday, as heavy congestion disrupted movement along the busy corridor. Sule was travelling to Pune to attend a Maharashtra Day event when she encountered the prolonged delay.
Sharing visuals from the spot, Sule posted a video showing long queues of vehicles stretching across the expressway. “It has been two hours,” she said, while interacting with fellow motorists stuck in traffic. In the clip, she is seen conversing in Marathi with a driver, who responded with “Jai Maharashtra.”
The traffic buildup was particularly severe along the Khandala Ghat section and near Lonavala, where vehicles moved at a crawl for extended periods. Many commuters reported delays exceeding two hours, with congestion affecting both lanes heading towards Lonavala. Visuals from the area showed continuous lines of vehicles winding through the hilly stretch, with little immediate relief during peak travel hours.
The congestion coincided with the public opening of the ‘Missing Link’ project on the expressway, a key infrastructure upgrade developed by the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation to improve connectivity and reduce travel time between Mumbai and Pune. However, the launch, combined with weekend travel and the state holiday, led to a sharp rise in vehicular movement, intensifying the traffic situation.
While conditions improved slightly after vehicles crossed the ghat section and moved beyond Lonavala, the incident once again highlighted recurring bottlenecks on one of Maharashtra’s busiest highways.
Meanwhile, Maharashtra Day celebrations were held across the state. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis hoisted the national flag earlier in the day and later paid tribute to martyrs of the Samyukta Maharashtra Movement at Hutatma Chowk.
The episode underscores the challenges of managing traffic flow on critical expressways, especially during peak travel periods and major public events.
Source: The Free Press Journal
