Ghaziabad: The city streets are anyway crowded. They are now being choked by haphazard parking, encroached footpaths and roadside activity that spills on to carriageways.Across Indirapuram, Vaishali, Vasundhara and the old city, a smooth ride has become increasingly rare as vehicles line roadsides, pedestrians are pushed off footpaths, and market-bound traffic competes for shrinking space. The worst-hit stretches include Kala Patthar in Indirapuram, the road to Vaishali Metro station, CISF Road in trans-Hindon, and old city pockets such as Navyug Market, GT Road, Turab Nagar and Choudhary Mor.According to traffic cops, illegal and haphazard parking is one of the biggest reasons behind this daily chaos. But residents pointed out that there are simply no designated parking spaces near markets, forcing people to leave their vehicles on the roadside and walk to their destinations.The parking pressure is compounded by poor street design and encroachments. Footpaths in several market areas have been taken over by pan kiosks and food stalls, leaving pedestrians with little choice but to walk on the road. That, in turn, narrows the usable carriageways and worsens bottlenecks.Anil Kumar, a resident of Indirapuram, agreed that illegal parking has become a major reason for worsening traffic in Indirapuram, Vaishali and Vasundhara. “People park carelessly outside malls and restaurants such as Windsor Market because they want to stop as close as possible to where they are going. That creates bottlenecks even on wide roads. In many places, the traffic load is already more than what the roads can handle,” he added.Even where multilevel parking exists, it is not solving the problem fully. A multilevel facility near Shaheed Sthal New Bus Adda metro station, opened in 2025, can hold nearly 200 cars and over 500 two-wheelers, and includes EV charging. Another facility near the collectorate can take in around 500 vehicles. Yet, roadside parking continues.A commuter summed up the problem bluntly. “The multilevel parking is often too far from where people actually need to go. Families, elderly people and those carrying bags do not want to walk that stretch. So, they park wherever they find space near the destination,” he told TOI.The collectorate area is one of the clearest examples of this menace. With multiple offices nearby and the court complex next door, vehicles spill on to roads within a kilometre of the site on working days, especially between 10am and 4pm. This slows traffic on both service lanes and the main carriageway.Anuj Singh, a commuter, said jams are routine on the way to Hapur Chungi because of vehicles parked outside the collectorate. “People leave their cars and bikes on the service road and even on the main carriageway. The same happens outside the police commissioner’s office, but there is hardly any action,” he added.GT Road faces a similar problem, with shopkeepers and visitors parking under the flyover and along the roadside, further squeezing traffic in one of the city’s busiest corridors.Officials admitted enforcement alone cannot fix the mess.Ghaziabad’s traffic police strength now stands at 884, up from 665 after commissioner J Ravindra Goud expanded the force in Dec. The unit includes one DCP, three ACPs, 12 inspectors, 135 sub-inspectors, 312 head constables and 421 constables. But for a city of over 60 lakh people, the manpower remains stretched. In 2025, more than 14.4 lakh traffic challans were issued across the district, including 1.7 lakh in the city zone.Additional CP (law and order and traffic) Raj Karan Nayyar said traffic police recently met GDA officials to push for more organised parking.“We have asked them to build more multilevel parking facilities, which are a serious need in the city and in trans-Hindon areas. Empty plots near busy markets will also be identified, and owners will be approached so these can be converted into parking spaces through an agreement with GDA,” he added.The development authority is also planning wider road interventions at 10 roundabouts, cross-sections and stretches, including Hapur Chungi, Thakurdwara tri-section, Madhuban Bapudham, Pratap Vihar DPS Chowk, Ajnara Integrity in Raj Nagar Extension, Ashiana Chowk and Bunkar Mart Chowk.At Hapur Chungi, where traffic from Kavinagar, Raj Nagar Extension, the DM office and police lines converges, GDA is planning a 1.5km, four-lane elevated road from Raj Nagar Extension towards Kavinagar and Shastri Nagar at an estimated cost of Rs 150 crore.Other stretches, including DPS cross-section to Leelawati cross-section, Holy Child roundabout, Hapur tri-section, Hint Chowk in Raj Nagar and Seth Mukundlal roundabout, are likely to be made signal-free. GDA will also ask Rail India Technical and Economic Service (Rites) to prepare a fresh mobility plan — the first since a 2018 study by Central Road Research Institute.
