Pune Diwali Shopping Traffic: Goods Vehicles Barred From Laxmi Road, Tulshibaug and 11 Other Peth Spots by Day Till November 12; Weekend Heavy Vehicle Ban on Shivaji, Bajirao Roads

Pune, 1st November 2026: If you are heading to Laxmi Road or Tulshibaug for Diwali shopping this week, expect fewer tempos and trucks in the lanes but plenty of crowds. Pune traffic police have barred goods vehicles from the main Peth market areas during the day until Thursday, 12 November, and separately kept heavy vehicles off Shivaji Road and Bajirao Road on weekends until Diwali ends.

The orders were issued by Deputy Commissioner of Police (Traffic) Dr Sandeep Bhajibhakre to ease congestion in the old city, where narrow roads, shop deliveries and festival shoppers compete for the same space every October and November.

Goods vehicles: daytime ban in the Peths till 12 November

The restriction on goods vehicles came into force on 26 October and runs till 12 November. Goods vehicles are allowed into the listed areas only between 9 pm and 9 am, and only for loading and unloading. Through the day, they have to stay out.

The order covers these roads and spots:

• Laxmi Road
• Kumthekar Road
• Tilak Road
• Bajirao Road
• Mahatma Phule Mandai
• Shanipar
• Tulshibaug
• Bohri Ali (Raviwar Peth)
• Ganesh Peth
• Shukrawar Peth
• Pasodya Vithoba Chowk
• Moti Chowk
• Tapkir Galli (Budhwar Peth)

Transporters and shop owners have been told to plan deliveries within the night window. For traders on Bohri Ali or in Tapkir Galli who usually take stock in the afternoon, that means an earlier start or a late-night unloading slot until the festival is over.

Weekend ban on Shivaji Road and Bajirao Road

Separately, from Sunday, 25 October, heavy vehicles are not allowed on Chhatrapati Shivaji Road and Bajirao Road on Saturdays and Sundays until the end of Diwali. Earlier, construction-related and goods vehicles had been allowed on major roads on weekends. That permission has been withdrawn for central Pune for the festival period.

These two roads carry much of the north-south traffic through the old city towards Swargate, and on a busy festival evening a single slow-moving truck can hold up traffic for a long stretch. The traffic branch has also said it will act against roadside parking near the market areas.

Planning your shopping trip

The days before Lakshmi Puja on Sunday, 8 November, are usually the most crowded in the Peth markets, and the coming weekend of 7 and 8 November falls right on top of the festival. A few things that help:

Take a PMPML bus, an auto or the metro where you can. Mandai and Kasba Peth are on the metro, and walking into the market lanes from there is often quicker than circling for parking. If you must drive, go early on a weekday morning, before the crowds build.

Two-wheelers are still the most practical way into the lanes, but parking along Laxmi Road itself is limited and traffic police have said they will act against vehicles left on the road. Use designated parking lots and keep valuables close, since crowded markets also see pickpocketing.

For what to buy where, see our guide to Pune’s Diwali shopping markets. If you are travelling out of town for the festival, our story on MSRTC’s 1,200 extra buses from Pune has the bus details.

The orders do not list exemptions in the reports so far. Emergency vehicles are normally exempt from such traffic orders. We will update this article if the traffic police announce road closures or diversions for Lakshmi Puja.

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