News: Vendor Carts Slow Traffic at Gurugram’s Mahavir Chowk-28-04-2026
Encroachment by cart vendors and hawkers has caused severe congestion and safety concerns at Mahavir Chowk, one of Gurugram’s busiest intersections near the bus stand, residents and officials said.
Residents said carts multiply after 5-5:30 pm as commuters return from work, and more so on weekends. Girish Gupta, road safety officer (RSO) associated with Gurugram traffic police in decongestion projects, said carts cover a major part of the road and vendors have turned it into a shopping area. With footpaths occupied, he said, pedestrians, vehicles and carts share the same stretch, so traffic is bound to slow.
Traffic experts said the congestion spills over to Maharaja Agrasen Chowk and areas near Aggarwal Dharamshala. Savita Devi, a resident of Sector 46, said carts stand even at U-turn points, making it hard for buses and large vehicles to move. Rakesh Gupta of Sector 107 said vendors leave behind garbage, leftover food and plastic that clog drains.
The district traffic police recently began a trial to decongest a four-kilometre stretch from Old Railway Road to Mahavir Chowk to ease pressure on MCG Road and Sadar Bazar, but officials said improvement at the junction has been limited.
Neeraj Kumar, traffic inspector West-II, said the Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG) has been asked to act. An MCG enforcement team inspected the site on Monday. An officer, requesting anonymity, said most vendors removed their carts on learning of the visit, several others were cleared, and regular drives will follow as vendors are expected to return.
