A snarl that choked Beer Chand Patel Path on Monday. Picture by Ashok Sinha

The morning traffic congestion and a clammy weather added up to make Monday a mess for Patna commuters.

If the wind speed was just 3km/hour, the momentum of the vehicles was no better either. Traffic dragged as if people were reluctant to go to the offices and schools.

According to daily commuters, the traffic problem in Patna is a recurrent phenomenon but what made matters intolerable was the 56 per cent humidity and the easy-go attitude of the traffic police.

“Traffic has always been bad in Patna. But it has been worse since the last week. One of the reasons is that the traffic constables seem to get too tired because of the sultry weather. I was stuck in heavy traffic for at least half-an-hour at the Boring Road roundabout on Monday. Once I reached the roundabout, I couldn’t find a single constable manning the clogged thoroughfare,” said Santosh Kumar, a daily commuter.

Santosh added that as he turned his vehicle towards the high court, he saw a constable duo resting under a shade near Sudha milk booth near the roundabout.

“During the office time in the morning, the roads are completely chock-a-block. Fresh air is a luxury. Constables should be on the vigil. But with this kind of weather, I can understand manning the roads is too much to ask for,” he added.

As the maximum temperature touched 34°C, the traffic situation was similar in all parts of the city.

“Traffic was heavy at Income Tax roundabout. Mondays are generally tough for the constables because it is the first day of the week. But this week it was different. Vehicles got stuck at the roundabout, as everyone wanted to move first because of the uncomfortable weather,” Nilesh Singh, who works with a private bank, said.

Like Santosh, Nilesh too said he couldn’t find a traffic police on the road on Monday.

“No traffic constable was on the road. Around 20 minutes later when I got out of the jam, I stopped my vehicle and saw a constable standing in one corner of the road. I requested him to take cue of the traffic situation. After a few minutes, the constable was on his job. But by then, the commuters were drenched in sweat,” Nilesh added.

The constables, too, admitted that the heat was taking a toll on them. “We are on duty even in the scorching heat. The weather is so humid now that one cannot stand continuously at one place. Sometimes, the weather forces us to look for a shade,” a constable at the Boring Road roundabout said.

Has there been an increase in traffic snarls in recent times? Tell ttbihar@ abp.in