Bengaluru: The long weekend culminated in frustration for many travellers on Sunday as they returned to the city.
Major roads leading into Bengaluru were packed with vehicles, causing long delays at all main entry points.
After three days of holidays, including May Day, thousands of people who had gone to their hometowns or tourist spots returned at the same time.
The city's primary arteries, Mysuru Road, Tumakuru Road and Old Madras Road (the KR Puram stretch), saw slow-moving traffic.
Traffic police said the usual evening peak-hour traffic was extended by two to three hours.
May long weekend | X user's 'Half Bangalore' comment on traffic video goes viralOn Tumakuru Road, the gateway for over 20 districts, the Nelamangala toll gate became a major congestion point.
"We reached the city outskirts in quick time, but spent nearly 45 minutes just trying to cross the toll and enter the NICE Road Junction," said Ananth S, a commuter returning from Chikkamagaluru.
In the east, the Tin Factory and KR Puram junctions were filled with inter-state buses arriving from Hosur, Chennai and Tirupati. Meanwhile, Goraguntepalya saw traffic stretching past Jalahalli and the 8th Mile.
"While city-centre traffic was reduced by nearly 60% during the peak of the holiday, the return rush usually sees a 20% spike in congestion compared to normal Sundays," a senior traffic police officer said.
Police cautioned that traffic was expected to persist into the early hours of Monday, from 5 am to 8 am, as the final wave of travellers returned ahead of the work week.