Pahalgam buckles under weekend rush

Pahalgam, Jun 14: Every weekend, long queues of vehicles snake their way towards Pahalgam, turning a journey to Kashmir’s premier tourist destination into an hours-long ordeal.

As the summer season gathers momentum, the resort town is once again grappling with traffic congestion, overcrowding and growing ecological stress, prompting calls for regulating the influx of local day visitors.

Stakeholders say the pressure is most visible on weekends and holidays when thousands of visitors from across Kashmir descend on the hill resort for day trips, overwhelming roads, parking spaces and public amenities.

The bottlenecks begin well before Pahalgam.

While the Khanabal-Pahalgam (KP) Road remains four-laned for nearly 14 km up to Seer, traffic movement slows considerably beyond that point where the stretch narrows.

Vehicles line both sides of the road and the final stretch to Pahalgam often witnesses bumper-to-bumper traffic.

“The journey from Srinagar to Seer is usually smooth except for occasional congestion in Bijbehara and parts of Anantnag town and takes around one-and-a-half to two hours. Beyond Seer, it can take another three hours to cover barely 30 kilometres during peak rush,” said Shabir Ahmad, a hotelier.

The alternative ‘Apple Valley’ route via Bijbehara offers little relief.

The road merges with the KP Road at Langanbal before entering Pahalgam, creating another major congestion point.

“Even on the Apple Valley route, traffic jams are common. The 10-km stretch from Langanbal to Pahalgam can take nearly two hours on busy weekends,” Ahmad said.

The congestion persists inside the resort town, particularly in the main market where vehicles struggle for space throughout the day.

“Visitors spend more time in traffic than enjoying the destination,” said Muhammad Yousuf, a tourism service provider. “People leave Srinagar and other parts of Kashmir early in the morning hoping to spend the day in Pahalgam, but a significant part of their outing gets consumed on the road.”

Yousuf said the traffic mess often prevents visitors from exploring nearby attractions.

“With traffic jams stretching for kilometres, it becomes difficult for tourists and local visitors to visit places like Aru, Chandanwari, Betab Valley, Baisaran and Aathnadan.

Many spend most of their time navigating congested roads instead of sightseeing,” he said.

The rush, Yousuf said, was not confined to roads alone.

“Even finding space at restaurants and eateries becomes difficult during peak weekends. Tourists and local visitors often have to wait for long periods for tea, snacks or meals. Many leave Pahalgam with a frustrating experience rather than the pleasant outing they had planned,” he said.

Yousuf said inadequate parking facilities and narrow internal roads have compounded the problem.

“There is limited parking in Pahalgam and not a single road has been upgraded despite the increase in visitor numbers over the years,” he said.

Yousuf cited the Golf Course-Laripora link road as one such example.

“The road is too narrow for smooth two-way traffic. Widening it would ease pressure on the main market and improve traffic movement within the town,” he said, adding that even the Circuit Road which branches from the main road at Sarbal and reconnects near Laripora village remains choked with traffic.

Beyond traffic concerns, residents and environmental activists say the growing rush is taking a toll on Pahalgam’s fragile ecology.

Local activist Mushtaq Pahalgami said the number of weekend visitors often exceeds the destination’s carrying capacity.

“On weekends, the rush is several times more than what Pahalgam can comfortably accommodate. The system needs to be streamlined before the situation worsens further,” he said.

According to Pahalgami, the environmental impact becomes evident after every busy weekend.

“There is plastic waste, polythene and other litter scattered across picnic spots and open spaces. Even the Lidder River is getting affected because of irresponsible waste disposal,” he said.

Stakeholders say accommodation capacity is not the primary concern.

According to local tourism stakeholders, hotels, guesthouses, huts, and government-run accommodation facilities spread across Pahalgam and downstream areas falling under the jurisdiction of the Pahalgam Development Authority (PDA) including Sarbal, Langanbal, Lidroo, Batkoot, Gujrani Batkoot, Mawoora, Yanner, Srichan, Dehwatoo, Ladi, Hardi Kichroo, Khilan, Veersaran, Overa, Ganeshpora, Aamad-Wagad and Jaibal have adequate capacity to cater to tourists staying overnight.

“There is enough accommodation available in and around Pahalgam for tourists and local visitors staying overnight. The problem is not accommodation. The pressure comes from the massive rush of day visitors arriving in private vehicles on weekends and holidays,” Pahalgami said.

He advocated regulating the inflow of visitors during peak periods through designated checkpoints along the route from Ganeshpora to the Langanbal toll post.

“There should be a cap on the number of people visiting Pahalgam and adjoining downstream tourist spots within the PDA limits on any given day. Without regulation, pressure on infrastructure and ecology will continue to mount,” Pahalgami said.

Officials also favour exploring technological interventions.

One official said an online entry mechanism for local visitors could be considered, with authorities fixing a daily ceiling based on the destination’s carrying capacity.

“The additional influx can be diverted to other scenic destinations in south Kashmir such as Kokernag, Daksum, Achabal,, Chatapal, Sinthan Top, Margan Top and Aharbal. This would reduce pressure on Pahalgam while promoting tourism elsewhere,” he said.

Chief Executive Officer (CEO), PDA, Nasrul Hilal Jeeri, said measures taken by the administration have already helped ease congestion to some extent.

He said traffic flow improved significantly after the restoration of the parallel bridge at Sarbal.

“One of the bridges had been damaged and only a single bridge was operational. With both bridges now functional, traffic movement has improved and jams have eased considerably,” Jeeri said.

Despite the improvement, local stakeholders say infrastructure measures alone will not be enough to address the problem.

“The number of people visiting Pahalgam on weekends is far beyond what the destination can comfortably absorb. Unless there is a mechanism to regulate the rush, both the visitor experience and the ecology of the area will continue to suffer,” Pahalgami said.