‘Half of Pune to be Closed’: Major Traffic Block in Shivajinagar, Deccan on Monday, Jan 19; Schools and Colleges Declared Closed
Reported by Mubarak Ansari
Shivajinagar, 17th January 2026: The Pune City Traffic Police have announced major traffic diversions and road closures in the city to facilitate the “Pune Grand Challenge Tour,” a cycling competition organized by the Pune District Administration in association with the Cycling Federation of India (CFI).
Joint Commissioner of Police Ranjan Kumar Sharma said, “the cycling competition is scheduled from January 19 to January 24, 2026. However, significant traffic restrictions will be enforced specifically for the “Prologue Race” on Monday, January 19, 2026.”
Cycles will be traveling at 60-70 km speed, hence safety measures are being taken, officials said.
Additional Commissioner of Police Manoj Patil said, ” There will be Collector declared holiday. We have informed schools, colleges in nine wards of PMC. People should avoid vehicles for taking in the Shivajinagar area. People can walk and use metro services. Similar restrictions will be planned on January 23 and informed later.”
Key Restrictions and Timing
The restrictions will be in place from 09:00 AM to 06:00 PM on January 19. During this time, the designated race route covering Fergusson College (FC) Road, University Road, Jangli Maharaj (JM) Road, and connecting streets will be completely closed to all vehicular traffic and pedestrians to ensure the safety of the participants.
Closed Routes
The Traffic Department has ordered the closure of the following segments:
Khanduji Baba Chowk to Goodluck Chowk: Including the closure of Garware Bridge towards Goodluck Chowk.
Goodluck Chowk to Chafekar Chowk: Covering the main stretch of FC Road.
Chafekar Chowk to Range Hills Corner: The stretch leading towards University.
Range Hills Corner to Sancheti Chowk: Including the route via Suryamukhi Datta Mandir Chowk.
Sancheti Hospital Chowk to Deccan Gymkhana Bus Stand: Via Bala Gandharva Chowk.
Alternative Routes for Commuters
To minimize inconvenience, the police have designated several alternative routes:
From Swargate/Kothrud to University/Shivajinagar: Commuters are advised to route via Alka Chowk, Senapati Bapat (SB) Road, or the Riverbed Road (Bhide Bridge) instead of Khanduji Baba Chowk.
From University/Khadki to Deccan/City: Vehicles should use the Old Mumbai-Pune Highway, Sangamwadi, or divert via Range Hills and Khadki to access the city areas.
Local Diversions: Traffic usually using FC Road and JM Road is being diverted via Senapati Bapat Road, Prabhat Road, and the Riverside Road.
No-Parking Zones
DCP (Traffic) Himmat Jadhav also notified that a strict “No-Parking Zone” will be enforced on both sides of the race route for the duration of the event.
Exemptions
Emergency services, including Fire Brigade, Police vehicles, and Ambulances, as well as vehicles directly associated with the competition, are exempt from these restrictions. However, police have coordinated with hospitals to avoid ambulance come to these areas and patients will be shifted to nearby areas.
Citizens are urged to cooperate with the traffic police and utilize the suggested alternative routes to avoid congestion during the event hours, appealed DCP (Traffic) Himmat Jadhav.
