Pune: What should have been a routine commute turned into a gruelling three-hour ordeal for Pulgate resident Anand More on Monday evening. As sporadic rain and hail battered the city, massive traffic snarls were triggered by a familiar culprit: malfunctioning traffic signals at several key junctions.More, who was returning home from his workplace on Ghole Road, said lack of functional signals turned minor delays into total chaos. “The signals at Rani Laxmibai Chowk and the Juna Bazaar roundabout were completely dark. It took me nearly an hour and a half just to cross these two points because vehicles were converging from all directions without any regulation,” he said, adding that similar gridlock prevailed at Babasaheb Ambedkar Chowk and MG Road.Wanowrie resident Shaheen Qadir Shaikh echoed this frustration. “Traffic police were present at Juna Bazaar trying to manage the flow, but the volume was simply too high. With motorists breaking rules left and right, the situation quickly became unmanageable,” she said. “Defunct signals have become a recurring nightmare. It raises serious questions about the authorities’ maintenance schedule.”Despite assurances made by the Pune traffic police over seven months ago to equip signals with power backups and draft a detailed project report (DPR) for system upgrades, the ground reality remains unchanged.Additional commissioner of police Manoj Patil acknowledged that the upgrade process is lagging. “The DPR for traffic signal development is still pending. Currently, Pune has 281 operational traffic signals, of which 156 lack power backup,” he said. Patil added that the department eventually aims to increase the total number of signals to 450 to meet future urban demands.However, many commuters have lost faith in these timelines. “Authorities made these exact same promises last year. If nothing has moved in months, how can citizens trust these new claims?” asked Suresh Krishnan, a Kothrud resident.Officials admitted that signals without power backup fail instantly during electricity outages, leading to immediate bottlenecks. A traffic constable, speaking on the condition of anonymity, pointed to a breakdown in motorist discipline during these failures. “Once the lights go out, many motorists treat it as a free-for-all. Even with police presence, the sheer volume of rule-breaking at major junctions quickly spirals into gridlock.“Currently, Pune has 302 traffic signals, 281 of which are operational. This includes 125 signals managed under the adaptive traffic management system (ATMS).Traffic experts have termed the recurring failures “alarming.” Ranjit Gadgil of the NGO Parisar highlighted the safety implications. “Functional signals are not just for vehicular flow; they are essential for pedestrian safety. Leaving signals non-operational during peak hours or bad weather is a major safety risk that must be addressed on priority,” he said.Urban transport expert Pranjali Deshpande added that the issue is one of willpower rather than technology. “These are basic infrastructure systems. They can be fixed relatively easily if the authorities prioritise them,” she said.
