Ahead of New Year’s Eve, police in Hyderabad have announced several traffic restrictions and closure of several flyovers on the night of December 31 Guidelines have been issued to managements of pubs, bars and other establishments hosting New Year’s Eve parties, as well as taxi and auto drivers and to the general public. The Hyderabad police have imposed traffic restrictions around Hussain Sagar lake, while the Cyberabad police have said that the Nehru Outer Ring Road (ORR) and PVNR expressway will be closed for vehicles except those going to the airport. Here’s the full list of traffic restrictions:
The Hyderabad police have announced that all the flyovers in the city will be closed for traffic on the intervening night of December 31 and January 1, except for the Begumpet and Langar House flyovers.
Rachakonda police said that the Nagole flyover, Kamineni flyover, LB Nagar flyover, LB Nagar underpass and Chinthalkunta underpass will be closed for light motor vehicles, two-wheelers and passenger vehicles from 10 pm to 5 am, while the Sagar Ring Road flyover will remain open.
In Cyberabad police commissionerate limits, the following flyovers will be fully closed to all vehicles and pedestrians, from 11 pm on December31 to 5 am the next day:
> Shilpa Layout flyover
> Gachibowli flyover
> Bio-diversity flyovers 1 & 2
> Shaikpet flyover
> Mind space flyover
> Road No.45 flyover
> Durgam Cheruvu cable bridge
> Cyber tower flyover
> Forum Mall-JNTU flyover
> Khaithlapur flyover,
> Babu Jagjivan Ram flyover (Balanagar)
In Hyderabad, vehicles will not be allowed on NTR Marg, Necklace Road and Upper Tank Bund from 10 pm to 2 am. The Mint Compound lane adjacent to Secretariat will be closed to vehicles. Police have suggested the following alternative routes:
> Traffic from VV Statue (Khairatabad) towards Necklace Road and NTR Marg will be diverted towards Nirankari and Raj Bhavan Road
> Traffic from BRK Bhavan towards NTR Marg will be diverted at Telugu Thalli junction towards Iqbal Minar, Lakadikapul, Ayodhya
> Traffic from Liberty junction will not be allowed towards Upper Tank Bund. Commuters will have to take a left turn at Ambedkar statue, Telugu Thalli, Iqbal Minar, Ravindra Bharathi and other alternative routes
> Traffic from Khairatabad market towards Necklace rotary will be diverted at Khairatabad (Bada Ganesh) towards Sensation Theater, Rajdoot lane, Lakdikapul
> Traffic from Nallagutta railway bridge will not be allowed towards Sanjeevaiah Park and PVNR Marg, and will be diverted towards Ranigunj/Minister Road
> Traffic from Secunderabad will be diverted at Sailing Club towards Kavadiguda crossroads, Lower Tank Bund, Kattamaisamma temple, and will have to take a left turn towards Ashok Nagar, RTC crossroads
Travel buses, lorries and heavy vehicles will not be allowed in Hyderabad city limits till 2 am on January 1.
In Cyberabad on the other hand, the Nehru ORR will be closed for light motor vehicles except those going to the airport from 10 pm to 5 am. Similarly, the PVNR expressway too will be closed for vehicles except those going towards the airport from 10 pm to 5 am.
Under Rachakonda police commissionerate limits, ORR will be closed for light motor vehicles and passenger vehicles from 11 pm to 5 am. Passengers travelling to the airport will have to show their tickets to be allowed on ORR, Rachakonda police said.
Any bar or pub which negligently allows customers to drive under the influence of alcohol will face action, the Cyberabad and Rachakonda police said. They asked managements of such venues to make alternative arrangements for travel for customers who are drunk, and also to stop drunk persons from driving a vehicle while leaving their premises. Earlier, the Hyderabad police too issue similar directions to managements of venues hosting New Year’s Eve parties.
The police have said that extensive checks for drunk driving will be done across the city, and warneed the public of consequences. They also warned the public that violations like rash driving, overspeeding, and triple riding will also be heavily scrutinised on New Year’s Eve.
The Cyberabad and Rachakonda police have instructed the drivers and operators of cabs, taxis and auto rickshaws that they shall not refuse rides to any public, and also to not demand excess fares. Noting that refusing to ply would be a violation of Section 178 of The Motor Vehicles Act which could invited a penalty, police have asked the public to send complaints over such issues on WhatsApp to 9490617346 (Cyberabad) or 9490617111 (Rachakonda).