The massive traffic jam on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway persisted for over 30 hours on Wednesday night, prompting Maharashtra PWD Minister of State Indranil Naik to call for long-term solutions to prevent such incidents.
Meanwhile, a transport industry representative said the situation highlighted the authorities’ lack of preparedness, reported news agency PTI.
Naik told a Marathi news channel that he was coordinating with the Home and PWD secretaries to ensure the expressway traffic was cleared promptly.
Traffic had come to a standstill after a gas tanker carrying propylene overturned near the Adoshi tunnel at around 5 pm on Tuesday.
As per PTI, a probe will be conducted into the incident, the minister added, emphasising that long-term measures were needed to prevent similar occurrences in the future.
Bal Malkit Singh, advisor and former president of the All India Motor Transport Congress (AIMTC), said the incident once again exposed the authorities’ inadequate preparedness in handling such emergencies.
“The traffic jam has caused severe inconvenience to commuters and massive losses to the transport industry,” Singh said in a statement, reported PTI.
He added that despite paying heavy tolls and multiple taxes, the transport fraternity continues to suffer due to inadequate infrastructure and poor emergency response mechanisms.
Aaditya Thackeray slams Maharashtra govt over Mumbai-Pune Expressway traffic chaos
Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray on Wednesday slammed the Maharashtra government for not ensuring basic facilities for commuters stuck on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway for more than 20 hours.
In a post on X, he questioned why authorities couldn`t intervene and offer food, water, and toilets, calling the situation “beyond absurd.”
“It`s beyond absurd that the Government can`t intervene and help people stuck on the Mumbai- Pune Expressway for over 20 hours. For all the talk of development and good governance, a basic intervention could have helped by reaching out to the people and offering food/ water/ toilets at certain distances from where they`re stuck,” he posted.
Thackeray also suggested that toll operators should bear responsibility for providing these services, given that they maintain and operate the highways.
“Been hearing of the plight of the people and the helplessness with which they`ve had to deal with this. Shouldn`t the toll operators be made to pay for these services that they “maintain” and “operate” the highways for?” added Aaditya Thackeray.
It’s beyond absurd that the Government can’t intervene and help people stuck on the Mumbai- Pune Expressway for over 20 hours.
For all the talk of development and good governance, a basic intervention could have helped by reaching out to the people and offering food/ water/…
— Aaditya Thackeray (@AUThackeray) February 4, 2026
(With PTI, ANI inputs)
