India, Aug. 25 -- With the much anticipated Ganpati festival barely two days away, traffic on the Mumbai-Goa Highway (NH 66) has surged manifold, with thousands from Mumbai, Thane, Navi Mumbai and neighbouring areas travelling to their hometowns in the Konkan region. The surge has led to traffic jams stretching several kilometres at multiple places along the highway, even as motorists inundate social media with photos and posts about the poor road condition, potholes and pending construction work.

To cater to the rush, the state government has arranged special trains and deployed around 1,000 additional state transport (ST) buses, many of which are already plying on the route. Yet, private vehicles dominate the highway.

"People are trav...