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Mixed reactions as FC road blocked for 6 hours for cycle race

Officials, however, said that the lower-than-usual vehicular movement helped avert major traffic jams.

Written by: Soham Shah, Sushant Kulkarni

3 min readPuneJan 20, 2026 11:07 AM IST

Traffic snarls on diverted routes as Fergusson College Road and JM Road close for Pune Grand Tour prologue.

Vehicles are stuck in a traffic jam at Eastern Freeway, in Mumbai on 01 September 2025. Traffic snarls on diverted routes as Fergusson College Road and JM Road close for Pune Grand Tour prologue. (File)

Written by Soham Shah, Sushant Kulkarni, and Swasti Jain

As traffic on key arterial roads in Pune was diverted for the Prologue of the Pune Grand Tour 2026, the roads to which vehicles were redirected witnessed traffic snarls on Sunday afternoon. Fergusson College Road, Jangli Maharaj Road and sections of University Road were closed to vehicular traffic from noon to 6 pm for the cycle race.

Officials, however, said that the lower-than-usual vehicular movement helped avert major traffic jams.

“The road closures and diversions were communicated well in advance and schools and colleges were closed. This resulted in a significantly lower number of vehicles on the roads. However, the roads where the traffic was diverted experienced traffic snarls in the afternoon. Close to 1,500 police personnel were on the streets for the Prologue stage. This helped a lot with crowd control and traffic management,” a senior officer said.

Some commuters, however, were caught unaware.

Dhanushree, who had travelled from Undri to shop at FC Road in the evening, had to return empty-handed after her autorickshaw was stopped near Lakdi Pul. After speaking to policemen at the spot, she told The Indian Express, “I did not know the road was closed. Now I just have to go back. Shopping plans were cancelled, it was a waste.”

Dwijayu Wankhede, a 25-year-old professional, said, “I had an important seminar to attend, but I couldn’t book an Ola or Uber as they kept cancelling. I had to walk a long distance.”

Nineteen-year-old Harshal Rathod echoed similar concerns. “Traffic was diverted to internal roads, causing a massive jam. One-ways created problems and I couldn’t find a parking space for my vehicle,” he said.

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Dattatray Koli, a Bavdhan resident travelling to Shivajinagar via Spicer College Road and Khadki, said traffic was slow but moving.
“There was some traffic slowdown on Spicer College Road and also in Khadki. However, the traffic was moving. In addition to slowed-down traffic, the distance was also an issue. But I had started early as the traffic changes were communicated in advance,” he said.

However, not all commuters viewed the event negatively.
Seventy-three-year-old Anagha Joshi said, “It’s a great event indeed for India. As far as road closures are concerned, we were informed about it beforehand, so we came prepared.”

Amresh Shinde, a private employee on his way to submit audit reports to a chartered accountant’s office on FC Road, was also diverted at Lakdi Pul. However, he said, “Even though I have to be there quickly, we should support the government. The collector has officially declared that these areas will be closed. This kind of thing does not happen every day.”

Swasti Jain is an intern with The Indian Express

Soham Shah

Soham Shah is a Correspondent with The Indian Express, based in Pune. A journalism graduate with a background in fact-checking, he brings a meticulous and research-oriented approach to his current reporting. Professional Background Role: Correspondent coverig education and city affairs in Pune. Specialization: His primary beat is education, but he also maintains a strong focus on civic issues, public health, human rights, and state politics. Key Strength: Soham focuses on data-driven reporting on school and college education, government reports, and public infrastructure. Recent Notable Articles (Late 2025) His late 2025 work highlights a transition from education-centric reporting to hard-hitting investigative and human-rights stories: 1. Investigations & Governance "Express Impact: Mother's name now a must to download birth certificate from PMC site" (Dec 20, 2025): Reporting on a significant policy change by the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) following his earlier reports on gender inclusivity in administrative documents. "44-Acre Mahar Land Controversy: In June, Pune official sought land eviction at Pawar son firm behest" (Nov 9, 2025): An investigative piece on real estate irregularities involving high-profile political families. 2. Education & Campus Life Faculty crisis at SPPU hits research, admin work: 62% of govt-sanctioned posts vacant, over 75% in many depts (Sept 12, 2025): An investigative piece on professor vacancies at Savitribai Phule Pune University. "Maharashtra’s controversial third language policy: Why National Curriculum Framework recommends a third language from Class 6" (July 2): This detailed piece unpacks reasons behind why the state's move to introduce a third language from class 1 was controversial. "Decline in number of schools, teachers in Maharashtra but student enrolment up: Report" (Jan 2025): Analyzing discrepancies in the state's education data despite rising student numbers. 3. Human Rights & Social Issues "Aanchal Mamidawar was brave after her family killed her boyfriend" (Dec 17, 2025): A deeply personal and hard-hitting opinion piece/column on the "crime of love" and honor killings in modern India. "'People disrespect the disabled': Meet the man who has become face of racist attacks on Indians" (Nov 29, 2025): A profile of a Pune resident with severe physical deformities who became the target of global online harassment, highlighting issues of disability and cyber-bullying. Signature Style Soham is known for his civil-liberties lens. His reporting frequently champions the rights of the marginalized—whether it's students fighting for campus democracy, victims of regressive social practices, or residents struggling with crumbling urban infrastructure (as seen in his "Breathless Pune" contributions). He is adept at linking hyper-local Pune issues to larger national conversations about law and liberty. X (Twitter): @SohamShah07 ... Read More

Sushant Kulkarni

Sushant Kulkarni is a Special Correspondent with The Indian Express in Pune with 12+ years of experience covering issues related to Crime, Defence, Internal Security and Courts. He has been associated with the Indian Express since July 2010. Sushant has extensively reported on law and order issues of Pune and surrounding area, Cyber crime, narcotics trade and terrorism. His coverage in the Defence beat includes operational aspects of the three services, the defence research and development and issues related to key defence establishments. He has covered several sensitive cases in the courts at Pune. Sushant is an avid photographer, plays harmonica and loves cooking. ... Read More

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