Traffic went haywire across several tourist destinations in parts of the Alluri Sitharama Raju (ASR) district on Sunday as thousands of tourists endured hours of gridlock on the Araku ghat road. Vehicles were stalled for nearly two to three kilometres on both sides of the road near Lammasingi and Araku, causing widespread inconvenience to travellers and local residents alike.
The congestion was primarily attributed to the weekend rush during the peak winter tourism season, with hundreds of private vehicles and tourist buses converging on narrow ghat roads that have limited capacity to handle such volumes.
Lammasingi and Araku Ghat Roads Witness Maximum Pressure
Roads leading to Lammasingi in Chintapalle mandal and long stretches of the Araku ghat road remained jam-packed for several hours. Motorists reported near standstill conditions, with traffic moving at a crawl as vehicles heading towards Araku and those returning from the hill station choked the same corridors.
Local residents said the situation has become a recurring challenge during weekends and holiday seasons, particularly when tourist inflow peaks due to favourable weather conditions.
Tourists Arrive From Multiple States Amid Winter Chill
Tourism officials observed that a large number of visitors from West Bengal, Odisha, and Chhattisgarh, along with tourists from Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, have been visiting Visakhapatnam city and various parts of the ASR district over the past few days. The dip in minimum temperatures to single-digit Celsius levels in some pockets of the district has further drawn tourists seeking foggy landscapes and chilly winter conditions.
Destinations such as Araku Valley, Lammasingi, Tajangi, and Ananthagiri have emerged as preferred winter getaways, especially among first-time visitors to the Eastern Ghats region.
Hotels and Resorts Report Near Full Occupancy
Reflecting the tourism surge, hotels and resorts across Vizag city, Araku Valley, Lammasingi, Ananthagiri, and nearby areas reported occupancy levels ranging between 90 and 100 per cent. Industry stakeholders stated that the sustained tourist flow has boosted local businesses but has also placed significant pressure on transport, parking, and civic infrastructure.
Popular tourist attractions in Visakhapatnam, including RK Beach, Kailasagiri, Tenneti Park, Indira Gandhi Zoological Park, Rushikonda, Bheemili, Thotlakonda, the Kursura Submarine Museum, and the TU-142 Aircraft Museum, continued to receive heavy footfall from morning to evening.
Locals and Tourists Share Concerns Over Traffic Chaos
Local resident K. Ramu of Araku said that the heavy inflow of vehicles resulted in prolonged traffic jams across several parts of the district. He warned that vehicular traffic to Araku and Lammasingi is likely to increase further during New Year celebrations, potentially leading to severe congestion on the ghat roads.
Tourists also voiced concerns over the lack of traffic regulation during peak hours. “We managed to come out of the traffic snarls only after more than one hour of hardship as vehicles heading towards and returning from Araku completely choked the ghat roads,” said D. Sudhakar, who visited Araku with friends.
Tourist Footfall Crosses 12,000 in a Single Day
According to local estimates, more than 12,000 tourists visited Araku, Lammasingi, Tajangi, and nearby tourist destinations in the ASR district on Sunday alone. The unprecedented footfall has once again highlighted the need for structured traffic planning, crowd management, and visitor regulation during peak tourism periods.
Experts have emphasized the importance of deploying traffic personnel, introducing time-based vehicle entry, and strengthening public transport options to manage vehicular pressure on ecologically sensitive ghat roads.
Need for Sustainable Tourism and Traffic Management
While the surge in tourism underscores the growing popularity of the ASR district as a winter destination, officials and residents alike have called for long-term solutions to balance tourism growth with infrastructure readiness. Sustainable tourism planning, improved traffic control mechanisms, and inter-departmental coordination are increasingly seen as essential to ensure safety, convenience, and environmental protection.
As New Year celebrations approach, authorities are expected to review traffic arrangements and implement preventive measures to avoid recurrence of large-scale congestion across the region.
