More than 6.20 lakh vehicles entered through Atal Tunnel Rohtang in 2022
1 min read . Updated: 03 Jan 2023, 07:22 AM IST
Premium- There has been an increase of approximately 4.73 lakh vehicles compared to the previous year
The Atal Tunnel Rohtang saw an influx of vehicles in 2022. According to Lahaul and Spiti Police, around 6,22,988 vehicles entered through Atal Tunnel Rohtang (ATR) in Lahaul valley in the year 2022, and around 6,50,711 vehicles exited through ATR.
The police said that traffic in the ATR in 2022 was far more than in 2021. As many as 3,76,870 vehicles entered the district in 2021 and 4,23,071 vehicles exited through ATR, which was 7,99,941 vehicles in total.
Therefore, there has been an increase of approximately 4.73 lakh vehicles compared to the previous year. This is an approximate 60% increase from the vehicular traffic number recorded the previous year.
The maximum monthly traffic was registered in the months of June, December, and May (in descending order), ie 2,25045, 2,02,974, and 2,11,824 respectively.
Further, the maximum traffic recorded for a single day was on December 26, 2022, which was 19,383. This is also the highest number for any day since Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated Atal Tunnel Rohtang.
A total of 16 days in the past year saw traffic of over 10,000 crossing the tunnel, with December having 6 such days.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Atal Tunnel in Rohtang on October 3, 2020.
Named after former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, the 9.02-km tunnel is the longest highway tunnel in the world. It connects Manali to Lahaul-Spiti Valley ensuring movement throughout the year.
Earlier, the Valley was cut off for about six months each year owing to heavy snowfall.
Recently, on 30 December, tourists in roughly 400 vehicles near South Portal of the Atal Tunnel in Rohtang Pass were stranded due to snowfall.
The vehicles were stuck as slippery conditions prevailed after snowfall at the tunnel on the Manali-Leh highway and adjoining areas on Thursday.
Police teams from Keylong and Manali jointly launched a rescue operation, which took 10-12 hours and concluded around 4 am on Friday, and the vehicles moved to their respective destinations.
The tunnel reduces the road distance of 46 kilometres between Manali and Leh and the time by about four to five hours.
The tunnel is built with ultra-modern specifications in the Pir Panjal range of the Himalayas at an altitude of 3,000 metres (10,000 feet) from the Mean Sea Level (MSL).
