As Diwali 2025 draws near, Chennai is experiencing a significant surge in road and terminal traffic as thousands of residents embark on journeys to celebrate the festival of lights with their families. This annual exodus, which began around October 16th, marks one of the city’s busiest travel periods. Major bus stands, railway stations, and highways are witnessing massive crowds.
To accommodate the overwhelming demand, the Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC) has deployed an impressive 20,378 special bus services originating from Chennai. These services, in addition to the regular fleet of 2,092 buses, are working tirelessly to transport passengers to various districts across the state, particularly the southern and western regions.
Official data reveals that in the last three days alone, over 615,000 passengers have utilized government bus services departing from Chennai. On a single Saturday, approximately 256,000 passengers traveled via a combination of regular and special bus services. Despite these extensive arrangements, bus terminals remain exceptionally crowded, with many passengers facing extended waiting times.
The railway stations, including Chennai Central, Egmore, and Tambaram, are equally congested. All trains heading south are reportedly operating at full capacity. The increase in private vehicles has also contributed significantly to traffic jams on major routes like GST Road, creating slow-moving queues of vehicles extending for miles.
Estimates suggest that around 1.8 million people have already departed Chennai for Deepavali celebrations in their hometowns. This figure breaks down into approximately 950,000 by train, 615,000 by government buses, 200,000 by omnibuses, and 150,000 by private cars, highlighting the immense scale of Diwali travel.