Smoother Eid journey thanks to special govt measures

Measures that resulted in safe Eid journey:

• Allowing motorcycles on all highways
• Prioritising project works on highways
• Works on Airport-Gazipur BRT project was stopped to facilitate travel through the area
• An elevated road and an extra lane were opened in Gazipur
• 34 congested areas on highways across the country were monitored from a control room
• The Highway police worked to prevent traffic gridlock
• Online sales of train tickets
• Proper traffic management

People experienced smooth Eid journeys this year thanks to strict vigilance through a control room, highway police's initiatives, special measures in slow project areas, and 100% online sale of railway tickets.

In addition to the relatively low number of passengers this Eid, allowing motorcycles on all highways, including the Padma Bridge, decreased the anarchy over fares this year compared to other years, said transport experts and organisations working on the rights of passengers.

After the peaceful Eid celebrations, many people started coming back to the capital yesterday, but the city roads have not yet regained their traditional appearance. Most of the roads in the capital were empty, except for the ones in bus terminal and railway station areas, yesterday – the first working day after Eid.

Roads Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader has said people travelled without facing any trouble this year.

According to the sources, the road transport and bridges ministry organised a meeting a week before the Eid holiday where representatives of various organisations of vehicle owners, workers, passengers, Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA), Police Headquarters, and Roads and Highways Department participated to ensure safe travel for people.

At the same time, work on the Airport-Gazipur BRT project, which has been running for more than a decade, has been stopped in some areas in order to facilitate the journey towards Gazipur. Besides, an elevated road and an extra lane were opened, and drains were cleaned in the area.

Shamsul Haque, transport expert and Director of BUET's Accident Research Institute, told The Business Standard that the Eid journey was smooth this year due to the sincere implementation of the ministry's plans.

He said, "The cumulative effort for managing extensive pressure is increasing every year. Initially there was a lack of coordination for such large events. Using past experiences, success has been achieved this year."

He said in previous years there used to be severe traffic jams on the roads toward the Northern region. This year, the construction or renovation works of projects in this area have been completed before Eid, with special emphasis on these roads.

He also said the Padma Bridge, the expressway built around it, and the road from Dhaka to Rangpur via Elenga, have allowed more people to travel with fewer vehicles.

According to the Road Transport and Highways Division, 34 congested areas on highways across the country have been monitored 24 hours a day through cameras from a control room set up at the BRTA headquarters. If there was any sign of traffic jam, the Highway Police was contacted and requested to ease it.

When the Eid journey started on 17 April, there were no reports of any traffic congestion anywhere in the country. For the next two days, traffic moved slowly due to the increased pressure on the road. There were little traffic congestions at the toll plazas of Padma Bridge, Bangabandhu Bridge and Meghna-Gomati Bridge at that time.

On the eve of Eid, traffic jams were reported at some points in Savar, Kaliakair, Chandra and Gazipur, but they did not last because of the immediate initiatives taken by the authorities.

Shithanshu Shekhar Biswas, director (engineering) of BRTA, said the Eid journey has been smooth this year as no vehicles were stuck anywhere due to traffic jams for a long time. There were huge traffic gridlocks at various toll plazas last year, but that was not seen this year. Apart from that, travellers' suffering has also been reduced due to the opening of the overpass of the BRT project.

The secretary of the Road Transport and Highways Division personally visited from Cumilla to Hatikamrul and asked every official concerned to work with sincerity. All officials of the road transport and the bridges ministry worked at the field level, which benefited the Eid travellers, said the sources.

Bangladesh Passenger Welfare Association Secretary General Mozammel Haque Chowdhury said people had a safe Eid journey this year due to a long holiday, free movement of motorcycles, fewer people leaving Dhaka than expected, and improvement in management.

Because of allowing motorbikes on highways, the demand for buses was low and the anarchy over fares decreased. Accidents have also occurred less this time due to proper management of the roads, he added.

 Online ticketing eases suffering in train journeys

The journey of home goers was completely hassle-free on 17 April, when people started returning to their homes. Only the passengers who could buy tickets online on 7 April were able to board the train on that day.

However, the journey of Chattogram to Dhaka-bound Sonar Bangla Express train was cancelled on the previous day after an accident. For this reason, two Sonar Bangla Express trains carried passengers the next day.

Besides, due to the accident, there was some disruption in the train schedule in the eastern region for the next two days.

The trains from Rangpur, Dinajpur, Rajshahi, and the western region left Dhaka with some delay as usual, but the schedule did not collapse.

However, on 20 April, the additional pressure of passengers was seen at Kamalapur and Airport railway stations for standing tickets. The journey of ticket holders was hampered when ticketless passengers crossed the security barricade at Kamalapur railway station and sat inside the train and on the rooftop.

21 motorcyclists killed on Eid day

On Eid day, 22 road accidents occurred across the country and 21 persons were killed in 21 motorcycle crashes, according to the Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA). 

Sitangshu Shekhar Biswas, director (engineering) of BRTA, said mostly young men were killed in road accidents. Overspeed is responsible for most bike accidents.

Obaidul Quader calls for ensuring discipline

During the exchange of Eid greetings with journalists at the Secretariat, Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader said the number of road accidents remains low before Eid but it rises on the way back. Strict discipline should be ensured for a safe journey.

He urged everyone to work towards making the return trips as comfortable as the home-bound journeys.

Highlighting the progress of various development projects under his ministry, the minister said that road safety is the biggest challenge. The government has undertaken a Tk5,000 crore project for safe roads.

Obaidul Quader said, "We have roads, flyovers, four-lane and six-lane highways, expressways, metro rail, Padma Bridge, and Bangabandhu Tunnel. Everything is okay, but our concern is a lack of discipline in transport and roads. Restoring the discipline of roads is our main challenge.

Regarding motorcycles plying on the Padma Bridge, the bridges minister said the discipline with which the youth and motorcyclists have shown during Eid journeys is extraordinary.

More than Tk20.76cr toll on Padma Bridge collected in 7 days

The Bridges Division has collected more than Tk20.76 crore in tolls from vehicles crossing the Padma Bridge in the last seven days – from 17 to 23 April. 

A total of 1.88 lakh vehicles used the bridge during the period, paying Tk207,617,300 in tolls. Of these, 1.11 lakh vehicles crossed the bridge through the toll plaza at the Mawa point, while 77.34 lakh vehicles crossed the bridge through the Zajira point.

On 23 April, the day after Eid, around 36,000 vehicles crossed the bridge which is the second highest after 51,316 vehicles crossed the Padma Bridge on 26 June last year when it was first opened to traffic.

On the eve of this year's Eid, the second-highest toll of Tk3.92 crore was collected at Padma Bridge. Earlier on 8 July last year, the bridge authorities collected a toll of Tk4.19 crore in one day during the Eid-ul-Azha holiday.