Gurgaon: An open plot next to the Sirhaul toll plaza on Delhi-Gurgaon Expressway has turned into an unauthorised parking lot for commercial cabs, tempos and trucks, choking traffic at the entrance to Udyog Vihar.The problem peaks in the last few days of the month and the first few of the next, when most monthly passes for Municipal Corporation of Delhi’s toll tax and environment compensation charge expire, driving a surge of commercial vehicle owners to the toll booth to renew or recharge them.Cab operators park on the vacant plot while completing this process, while tempos and trucks use it to wait out their permitted entry window into Delhi. What began as brief halts went unchecked over time, until drivers started treating the plot as a regular parking lot.Congestion peaks during office hours, when commuter traffic approaching the toll plaza converges with vehicles heading to Udyog Vihar. Commuters get squeezed as cabs and trucks manoeuvre in and out of the plot, while queues at the toll booths frequently spill back towards the junction, compounding the problem.Motorists headed to Udyog Vihar do not pass through the toll plaza itself — they exit the expressway before the booths and take an internal sector road towards Kapashera and Udyog Vihar. But this same stretch also serves as the entry and exit point for the parking plot, putting both lines of traffic in direct conflict.The situation has worsened since traffic police closed a cut that earlier gave direct access to Udyog Vihar Phase 3. Traffic bound for phases 1, 2 and 3 has since been rerouted through the Kapashera-Sirhaul road and the effective carriageway width has shrunk.“There is daily chaos here. The stretch already witnesses heavy traffic because of the toll plaza, and now entering Udyog Vihar has become worse. Traffic police personnel and patrol vehicles are often present near the toll plaza, but the unauthorised parking continues,” said Rahul Bansal, a commuter.“There should be a designated parking or holding area for commercial vehicles away from the junction. The entry to Udyog Vihar itself is poorly designed, with vehicles negotiating sharp turns before entering the industrial area. Unauthorised parking should not be allowed at such critical junctions,” said Ishant Bhatia, a daily commuter who works in Udyog Vihar 3.Traffic police officials said they were aware of the problem and would hold discussions with toll operators to find a solution. “We will also explore regulating the timing of monthly pass renewals by commercial vehicle operators to ensure that this does not happen during peak traffic hours,” said Mahabir Singh, traffic inspector, highway.An NHAI official said the agency would request the district administration to demarcate the land and remove encroachments, if any, from the site.
