Traffic congestion, excessive dust near Gabtoli take a toll on passengers

Traffic congestion and excessive dust in the air on the Dhaka-Aricha highway near Gabtoli takes a toll on Dhaka inbound and outbound passengers, consuming up to two hours for the commuters to travel a three-kilometre area from Aminbazar to Salehpur.

Besides, local people and commuters also suffer every day from the gridlock that becomes intense from the afternoon. It spreads throughout the nearby 8-10 kilometre area by midnight.

Ongoing road repair work at different spots, limited movement on the Salehpur bridge, and indiscipline in the vehicular movement are the reasons behind the worse situation in the busy area, according to passengers, locals and police.

"The gridlock has recently increased as road repair works at different spots of the area are going on," said Md Abdullahil Kafi, additional superintendent of police (traffic) for Dhaka district.

"Our teams are trying their best to control traffic congestion. Sometimes, we keep the U-loops close to ease the jam," he told The Business Standard, adding that large vehicles' tendency to plunge into the roadside mud increase dust in the air.

"We cannot control the dust. The municipality should take steps in this regard," he added.

In a recent visit to the area, long traffic congestion was found on both sides of the Salehpur bridge. The whole area was smoggy because of the excessive dust.

Police were seen struggling to manage traffic pressure on both sides. Sometimes, Dhaka-bound vehicles were allowed to move, keeping the other side – Manikganj-bound road – closed. Buses and trucks were found moving recklessly, competing with each other, and going down to roadsides spreading dust as a result.

"We have no alternative to going down to the mud roadside as congestion takes huge time to cross the area. I came to Gabtoli from Hemayetpur in more than two hours. It would take at least one more hour to reach Gabtoli if I moved straight on the road," Sabbir Hossain, a truck driver, told TBS.

Hundreds of Dhaka-bound passengers were seen crossing the area on foot. Talking to TBS, they said they had to do that to save time, although walking along the roadsides was risky.

"The area sees frequent accidents due to reckless driving. We are conducting drives regularly to bring discipline on the road," said Atiqur Rahman, officer-in-charge of Savar Highway Police Station. Drivers, passengers and pedestrians should be more conscious, he added.

Passengers and local people said children and old-age people were the most affected because of the worst road conditions and air pollution. Besides, local homes, shops and other establishments also suffer, they added.

"In the morning, the traffic situation, to some extent, remains normal, but in the evening when I return from the office it gets worse. We fail to pass the small area in two hours, which is very disgusting," said a commuter, Shihab Talukder, who works for a private company at Mirpur in the capital.  

"Even clothes cannot be worn two days in a row as the floating dust makes it dirty," he told TBS.

The sufferings of the commuters increased in mid-January this year as girders of a portion of the Salehpur bridge were damaged. Although the Roads and Highway Department (RHD) already repaired the bridge, there remained restrictions on heavy-weight vehicle movement.

When contacted, RHD Executive Engineer Mohammed Shamim Al Mamun told The Business Standard that they completed the repair work long ago. "The bridge cannot be the reason behind the traffic congestion there."

He expected the construction work of a new bridge is about to end. "We think the new bridge would help reduce the congestion greatly," said the executive engineer.