Pune: Pothole-riddled roads in Hinjewadi are leading to shorter daily commutes being extended by 45 minutes to an hour for many IT employees. The poor condition of routes at entry points to the entire area on the highway and some pockets in the IT park are escalating the traffic congestion.Daily travellers to Hinjewadi said that Wakad Bridge, Hinjewadi Bridge, Bhumkar Chowk, Maan Road, Phase 1 Circle, Laxmi Chowk and Wipro Circle are the main pain points.“The potholes that were fixed earlier have been eroded again and the gravel used to fix the potholes has spread on the road, making it a hazard mainly for two-wheeler riders. I have to be extra careful in difficult traffic so as to avoid skidding ,” said techie Avinash Shinde. He added that he travels from Kharadi to Hinjewadi on a two-wheeler and it takes him over two hours in traffic to reach office.“Last year, it was constant waterlogging. This year, waterlogging has not happened to that extent yet, but the condition of roads is pathetic. We are forced to spend hours in traffic. This situation is arising from a complex bureaucratic mess, which is why we have long been raising the demand for a single local authority,” said Pooja Kale, a Hinjewadi resident.Tushar Dhumal, who resides in Baner, said, “The road from Maan to Hinjewadi is in very poor condition and narrow in some patches, causing bottlenecks. The authorities should widen the road as there has been lot of residential growth in the area and the route is insufficient to accommodate the rising number of vehicles.”Many techies pointed to the chronic bottleneck at Bhumkar Chowk and said it takes at least 30 minutes here to enter the IT park. This is in addition to choke points within the park itself, forcing them to ultimately be stuck for long durations at one intersection.Sangeeta Kumar, a homemaker living in the area, said, “There are rising instances of unruly driving behaviour here, especially by bus drivers and two-wheelers plying on wrong side. Along with bad roads, the situation has led to longer commutes for schoolchildren, too. There have been cases where school buses have been stuck in traffic and children were forced to miss evening activities.”
