Hyderabad’s highway traffic intensified on Saturday as the Dasara travel rush sent vehicles towards districts across Telangana and neighbouring destinations, with long queues forming at toll plazas and ongoing road works worsening congestion on several key routes.
The Hyderabad–Vijayawada, Hyderabad–Warangal, Hyderabad–Karimnagar and Hyderabad–Kurnool highways were among the major corridors affected as residents left the city for the festival. Traffic congestion was reported from Saturday morning, with officials expecting the rush to continue on Sunday.
At the Patangi toll plaza near Choutuppal on the Hyderabad–Vijayawada highway, vehicles, particularly cars, were caught in long queues. The slow progress of flyover and service road works at Choutuppal added to the traffic pressure on the route.
Similar conditions were reported at the Raikal toll plaza on the Hyderabad–Kurnool highway, where vehicles were described as being caught in bumper-to-bumper traffic. Road works at Balanagar, which were progressing slowly, also affected traffic heading towards Jadcherla and destinations beyond Hyderabad.
The congestion resulted from the combination of weekend travel and the Dasara movement, with large numbers of people travelling to their native towns and districts. The affected routes connect Hyderabad with several major urban centres and regional destinations, making toll-plaza operations and construction activity especially consequential during periods of concentrated travel demand.
The National Highways Authority of India and toll operators made efforts to manage the flow of vehicles, but the volume of traffic led to significant delays at multiple points. The reported queues also highlighted the operational difficulty of maintaining traffic movement where festive demand coincides with active flyover and service-road construction.
The travel rush was also visible on Hyderabad’s public transport network. The Jubilee Bus Station and Mahatma Gandhi Bus Station witnessed a heavy passenger turnout, with women and children among those boarding buses in large numbers to travel for the festival.
Authorities expect the highway rush to continue on Sunday. Travellers using the Hyderabad–Vijayawada, Hyderabad–Warangal, Hyderabad–Karimnagar and Hyderabad–Kurnool routes will face traffic conditions shaped by both festive movement and ongoing works at Choutuppal and Balanagar.
