Tourists are thronging Himachal Pradesh’s hill destinations to escape the blistering heat in the plains, with around 70,000 vehicles entering Shimla in the last 72 hours alone, officials said on Tuesday, triggering massive traffic congestion and worsening parking woes in the state capital.
According to officials, over 6,31,000 vehicles have reached Shimla in the past 24 days, including 3,70,000 from the Chandigarh-Kalka route. A large number of tourists also travelled via Kinnaur, Bilaspur and Kullu.
With the summer tourist season yet to hit its peak, the heavy inflow has left the “Queen of Hills” struggling with frequent traffic snarls across the city.
The surge in visitors has further intensified Shimla’s chronic parking problem, ASP Abhishek told PTI Videos.
Over the past week alone, 1,54,450 vehicles entered the city, with nearly 70,000 arriving in just three days, putting severe pressure on the traffic infrastructure, the officer said.
“In response to the ever-increasing vehicular pressure, special arrangements have been made across the city. Shimla has been divided into five zones and the responsibility to manage traffic has been entrusted to a gazetted officer in each,” the officer said.
“Volunteers are also being enlisted to assist in managing traffic, while police are facilitating the use of alternative routes to ease congestion within the city,” he said.
Officials said vehicles headed towards Upper Shimla are being diverted through the Shoghi-Mehli route to reduce congestion.
Authorities are also preparing for a further spike in tourist arrivals from June. Additional police personnel will be deployed after the ongoing panchayat elections conclude on May 31, officials added.
The peak tourist season in Himachal Pradesh usually begins in the first week of June, but this year the rush has started early due to heatwave-like conditions across north and western India, including Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and Delhi.