A Calcuttan took one-and-a-half hours to reach his office in central Calcutta from Park Street on Tuesday evening, around the time Prime Minister Narendra Modi took to the road as part of his Lok Sabha poll campaign in north Calcutta.

Another commuter let go of four trains at Shyambazar Metro station hoping the rush would ease with the passage of the evening.

Closed roads and many diversions made commute difficult in large parts of Calcutta four days before the city votes.

Hundreds of cars were caught in snarls because of the “VIP movement”.

Modi’s convoy moved from the Shyambazar five-point crossing to Swami Vivekananda’s ancestral house on Vivekananda Road.

“It was a harrowing drive. My car was diverted at multiple points. Finally, after I crossed the Park Street flyover, I was diverted to Lenin Sarani instead of being allowed to drive straight into Central Avenue,” said a Kasba resident.

The police said they had issued an advisory on Monday that alerted Calcuttans about the possible route of the Prime Minister and requested people to avoid the roads mentioned in the route.

Traffic at the Shyambazar five-point crossing and on Central Avenue, Jatindra Mohan Avenue, Girish Avenue, Bhupen Bose Avenue, Bidhan Sarani, College Street, Aurobinda Sarani, Beadon Street, Vivekananda Road, BB Ganguly Street, Lalbazar Street and Old Court House Street was the worst affected.

Many commuters who were stranded in parts of north Calcutta and were trying to take Metro met a large crowd at the entrance to the stations.

“There was a continuous announcement to wait on the platform if the train was too crowded. I let go of three trains before I could step into one,” said a Behala resident.

Many had to wait for 20-25 minutes in the queue just to reach the ticket counter, said a daily commuter.