Traffic chaos grips Tehran over Scarlet Wednesday or Chaharshanbeh Suri

Citizens find themselves trapped in queues stretching several hundred meters at public transport stations, desperately trying to make their way home from work.

Exploiting the current predicament, some private taxi drivers are capitalizing on the chaos by charging exorbitant fares.

Reports indicate that fares as high as 8,000,000 rials are being demanded for routes that typically cost citizens a mere 500,000 rials.

Many opted to forgo their private vehicles in an effort to evade the expected traffic congestion. However, this strategy seems to have backfired, as they now find themselves caught in what can only be described as the “public transport trap”.

Chaharshanbeh Suri, also known as Scarlet Wednesday, is a vibrant Iranian festival celebrated on the eve of the last Wednesday of the year before Nowruz, the Persian New Year.

During this lively event, people gather to jump over bonfires as a symbolic gesture to cleanse themselves of illness and bad luck, while welcoming the arrival of spring with joy and anticipation.