Festive getaway turns stressful as traffic snarls choke Bengaluru exits, travel fares soar

The long week coinciding with Christmas and the New Year, eagerly anticipated by many residents of Bengaluru, has turned into a stressful experience for thousands as massive traffic snarls choked all major exit roads from the city, and travel costs surged sharply. While the rush out of the city tested commuters’ patience, nearby tourist destinations such as Kodagu, Chikkamagaluru, Gokarna and Mysuru witnessed a significant influx of visitors.

With Christmas falling on Thursday and many offices granting leave through the week until January 1, 2026, the exodus from the city began as early as Wednesday. By Wednesday evening itself, exit corridors particularly Mysuru Road, Tumakuru Road and Old Madras Road were choked with slow-moving outbound traffic as families and groups set off for holidays.

On Wednesday morning, congestion peaked on the Bengaluru–Mysuru access-controlled highway, especially near the toll plazas, where long lines of bumper-to-bumper traffic stretched for kilometres. Hundreds of vehicles heading towards Mysuru and further on to Kodagu were caught in the jam, with many commuters reporting delays of nearly an hour at multiple points. The snarls had begun on Tuesday night and continued well into Wednesday morning.

Suresh Naik P., an IT professional travelling from Electronics City, said the situation worsened as soon as he joined the highway via NICE Road. “Traffic kept getting worse as we moved ahead, and the toll gates became major choke points. Normally, it takes about two-and-a-half hours to reach Mysuru from Bengaluru. This time, because of the festive rush, the journey took nearly three-and-a-half hours,” he said.

Inside the city, the traffic police braced for congestion, particularly around popular shopping malls where special traffic arrangements were made. Officials said, “The measures were aimed at ensuring smoother movement and preventing spillover congestion on arterial roads”.

A senior police official said that while no single corridor reported complete gridlock, the volume of vehicles was significantly higher than usual. “We anticipated increased traffic because of the long weekend and festive celebrations. Elaborate arrangements have been made to manage the flow, with additional personnel deployed at sensitive junctions and near malls,” the official said.

Meanwhile, the Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) announced the operation of 1,000 additional buses during the Christmas festival period. These special services, operated in addition to regular schedules, ran on December 19, 20 and 24 to facilitate outbound travel ahead of Christmas on December 25.

KSRTC officials said return special services from various intra-State and inter-State destinations to Bengaluru would be operated on December 26 and 28 to ease the post-festival rush.

Surge pricing

The festive season triggered a sharp rise in air and private bus fares. Ticket prices from Bengaluru to cities such as Chennai, Hyderabad, Kochi, and Mumbai climbed by 20%–30%, according to travellers and booking platforms. Industry sources said the surge pricing is likely to continue until after the first week of January.

Murali Krishnan, a resident of JP Nagar, said the cost escalation left him with few options. “I had to book tickets to Kochi for my family for December 27. Trains were completely full, and bus tickets were almost as expensive as flights. With no choice, I booked flight tickets for ₹6,000 per person. Under normal circumstances, it would have cost around ₹3,500 to ₹4,000,” he said.