Their effort seems to have paid off. This year alone, the helpline has heard from 17,063 callers and tried solving their complaints, the highest number of callers ever, and the number is increasing every month.

“Namaskar sir, Traffic helpline,” Constable Dharmendar Singh who is manning the helpline says crisply, while noting down the complaint of the caller. In case the complaint is regarding bad road conditions or waterlogging, the information is forwarded to the civic agency concerned.

The traffic helpline was in existence for a long time, though largely relegated largely to oblivion, with a single telephone line and no publicity. It was re-launched in April this year with five lines and a hotline connecting to the civic departments.

The officers have been provided with a software, along with a detailed road map of Delhi that is projected on a screen inside the helpline office. Whenever a complaint about a traffic jam comes in, that particular stretch is highlighted in red and the helpline informs the traffic officer in the area. “We constantly update zonal officers about complaints, and also inform and advise commuters about the problem and diversions,” said Constable Singh. “We are working in a systematic manner and each complaint is recorded. If recurrent calls about traffic jams come from a certain point in the city, we get to the ground and try finding a solution,” said Joint Commissioner (Traffic) S N Shrivastava. The traffic police have undertaken 56 engineering solutions, like building U-turns or changing circulation plans. “Many changes are also based on suggestions by callers,” Shrivastava added.