Motorists were left frustrated on Thursday as traffic in and around Palace Grounds was thrown out of gear due to the State-level convention organised by the Janata Dal (Secular).
As hundreds of vehicles, ferrying participants, headed towards the venue in the morning, massive traffic jams were reported across roads leading to the Palace Grounds and on other connecting roads.
Passengers heading towards the Kempegowda International Airport too experienced anxious moments as they waded through the pile-up to make it to their flights in time.
People were stranded on Ballari Road, Palace Road, Jayamahal Road, Nandidurga Road and the Cantonment area as the police allowed vehicles ferrying the participants to pass through.
As a result, vehicles coming from Mehkri Circle, Cauvery junction and Sadashivnagar were stuck in jams lasting for more than three hours.
The traffic police blocked U-turns, aggravating the problem further, said motorists. “I usually take around 35 minutes to reach Cunningham Road from Ballari Road. When I noticed the pile-up near CBI, I took a detour through RT Nagar. But there were jams even there. I finally reached two hours later,” said one of them.
For Ira Karni, a teacher at a school in Yelahanka, this was the second tryst with a JD(S) convention and traffic jams.
She, along with students from her school, were stuck in the school bus until 8 p.m. in November 2008 when a rally organised by the party brought almost all of the city to a halt.
“Thankfully, this time the school term has ended. I reached home (Jayanagar) at 7.30 p.m. after starting from school at 4.30 p.m.,” she said.
