People have started leaving the capital for the Eid-ul-Azha holidays and many suffered due to traffic snarl-ups on the Dhaka-Bangabandhu Bridge Highway.
Local sources said, that on the 13.5 km highway, especially from Elenga to the toll plaza of the bridge, there is a long tailback of vehicles, creating immense suffering for the holidaymakers.
Meanwhile, traffic police and Bangladesh Bridge Authority (BBA) have taken several initiatives from their previous experience of traffic monitoring to control traffic congestion.
Experts came to an acknowledgement by previewing the previous three year’s highway traffic conditions during Eid that the main reason behind excessive traffic jams on the roads is accidents and break-down vehicles.
In the previous year, the number of accidents on the highway during Eid-ul-Fitr was 20 and the number of accidents was 59 during Eid-ul-Azha. During this year’s Eid-ul-Fitr, the number of accidents increased by 63 per cent to 83 in one year.
During the previous Eid from April 4-9, 53 vehicles broke down on the Bangabandhu Bridge and numerous accidents occurred. Due to that around 35 km long traffic jam was created from Bangabandhu Bridge to Tangail’s Gharinda to the end of the Eid journey.
Passengers and drivers are anticipating traffic jams this Eid-ul-Azha due to accidents and broken-down vehicles. The 13.5 km unfinished road from Elenga to the Bangabandhu Bridge toll plaza is raising concerns about potential difficulties. Since the highway expansion to four lanes has not been completed yet, three-wheelers are actively running on this 13.5 km section.
Passengers and drivers are demanding increased monitoring on this stretch of highway to alleviate traffic congestion. Due to the slow progress in the work of the contractor of the four-lane highway upgrading project, one-way traffic arrangements are frequently being implemented on the 13.5 km highway for an extended period.
Bangabandhu bridge site officers of the BBA said that they have undertaken almost every possible initiative to keep the highways congestion-free. Following the previous year’s Eid-ul-Fitr, more toll booths are being added, and separate toll booths for motorcycles are being set up this Eid as well.
Bangabandhu bridge site office sources informed that a total of 25,267 vehicles crossed Bangabandhu bridge from June 8 midnight to June 9 midnight. From these vehicles, a toll of Tk 2,40,14,050 was received. Of this, 12,475 vehicles that have crossed from the eastern side of the bridge (Tangail), generated a toll of Tk 11,830,600. From the western side of the bridge (Sirajganj), 12,792 vehicles crossed, generating a toll of Tk 12,183,450.
Meanwhile, to keep the highway traffic free, Tangail district police organised a co-ordinating meeting on May 26, where actions were determined based on everyone's opinions. In that meeting, opinions on alleviating traffic congestion on the highway were collected in the presence of transport associations, workers' unions, government and non-government offices, and distinguished individuals. Subsequently, actions were determined, and the tasks for each office were distributed through discussions.
According to the decisions made at that meeting, the relevant offices have already started working on the ground (on the highway). Special monitoring arrangements have been made for the 13.5 km stretch of the highway from Elenga to the Bangabandhu Bridge toll plaza. Additionally, the policy of maintaining one-way traffic for northbound vehicles has been continued, and arrangements have been made for Dhaka-bound vehicles to use the link road from the Bangabandhu Bridge to Bhuapur Upazila to reach Elenga.
Mohammad Mizan Sarwar, general manager of Abdul Momen Limited, the contractor for the highway expansion to four lanes, stated that four kilometres of the 13.5 km highway were made usable during Eid-ul-Fitr. For this Eid, an additional four kilometres have been completed, making them usable for the journey. He believes that people travelling home this Eid will not face significant problems.
Executive Engineer Ahsanul Kabir Pavel of the Bangabandhu Bridge site office at BSEC said that the fewer unfit vehicles use the bridge, the fewer accidents and breakdowns will occur, reducing the likelihood of traffic jams. The more vehicles parked near the bridge, the greater the risk of traffic congestion. Therefore, drivers are being made aware to pay tolls with exact change to avoid delays. This will prevent the need to wait for change while paying tolls.
He further said that the pressure of livestock and goods-carrying vehicles on the highway has already increased compared to other times. However, vehicles are moving normally across the bridge.
Tangail Superintendent of Police Sorker Mohammed Kayser said that several plans have been made to keep the highway free of traffic jams during Eid-ul-Azha.
He added that the rainy season has begun this year, and livestock trucks have already started moving. Trucks loaded with seasonal fruits from the northern region are heading towards Dhaka. The transportation of animals and goods has increased. As a result, traffic load has already increased on the highway. To ensure smooth transportation on the highway, more than 700 members of police will perform duties round the clock in shifts. Additionally, arrangements have been made to ensure that the police remain on the field during rain and other natural calamities.
Long tailbacks over Padma Bridge
A 3-kilometre (km) long tailback has been created in front of the toll plaza of Padma Bridge, as the homebound rush began to pick up on Friday.
Starting from the Mawa end of Munshiganj, the tailback went beyond Kamarkhola of Sreenagar upazila in the morning, causing immense suffering to the homebound passengers, reports BSS.
Motorcycle booths were increased from one to two due to heavy traffic. Seven toll booths are working at the toll plaza to ease the traffic congestion.
The toll plaza authorities said that the Electronic Toll Collection System-ETC, which started on a trial basis 11 months ago for collecting tolls on moving vehicles, has not yet been fully operational.
The authorities said the cars were moving slowly due to the pressure of vehicles, but they were doing their best to keep traffic flowing.
