Ineffective tech fixes for Dhaka traffic: Just a waste of funds?

Mamun Khan, a student of North South University who also works in a private company, is just one of the several lakh commuters who spend multiple hours everyday on a bus to work and back home. A 15km distance between Bashundhara and Karwan Bazar takes Mamun at least one and a half to two hours everyday. 

According to statistics, 82 lakh working hours are lost every day in Dhaka due to endless traffic jams and mismanagement on the roads. 

Digital traffic signal lights and countdown timers have been installed at major intersections in Dhaka city since 2004. E-ticketing was introduced in Dhaka's bus service in 2022. 

But these simple systems, which keep traffic flow smooth and save commuters' time in major cities of the world, do not work in Dhaka. The systems and devices installed, costing crores of taka, became redundant, robbing road users of intended benefits and leaving the city's road traffic management in a primitive state. 

Traffic cops still wave hands to keep vehicles in order on the road and bus conductors still collect fare in cash. City roads are dangerous for all users as reckless drivers cannot be tracked once they escape from the area in their vehicles.

Even in the late 1980s, traffic lights were functional at Dhaka's strategic intersections such as Shahbagh, ensuring vehicles stop at red signals and allowing pedestrians to cross the road safely. Such lights, now digitalised, still blink at some intersections, but vehicles never follow them, requiring traffic police to wave hands to direct the vehicles.      

Over the past two decades, a number of projects were initiated to digitalise Dhaka's roads.  Measures to streamline Dhaka's road traffic, digital traffic signals, digital corridors, digital number plates, e-ticketing, use of artificial intelligence in signals are some of the projects initiated. Hundreds of crores of taka were spent in these digital initiatives. 

But why did they fail to bring any change to the city's chaotic traffic?

Experts say most of the projects were just a waste of money with little or no benefit due to implementation flaws, wrong selection of solutions and unregulated vehicles.

"A city's transportation system has certain prerequisites. But Dhaka has not been built in that way. The digital traffic system is not working because there are too many vehicles," said Dr Hadiuzzaman, a transport infrastructure specialist and a professor at Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET).  

Regarding solutions for the current problem, he said, "The number of vehicles has to be reduced. For this to be done, the public transportation system must be strengthened so that people are encouraged to use public transports."

How initiatives failed

E-ticketing 

According to the Bangladesh Road Transport Owners Association, there are a total of about 3,500 public transport vehicles on 79 routes in the Dhaka metropolis. Among these, e-ticketing was first introduced in public transport in November 2022. By January 2023 over 3300 buses from 59 companies were brought under e-ticketing.

Despite the rollout, a recent survey across Dhaka, including areas like Mirpur, Gabtoli, Kuril, Rampura, and Gulshan, revealed passengers were not receiving e-tickets and altercations over fares continue to be a daily occurrence.

Bus drivers expressed concerns about e-ticketing's impact on efficiency. They claimed the POS machines slowed down fare collection compared to traditional methods.

Al Amin, a driver for Bihanga Paribahan in Mirpur, said that the buses of the company charge the same amount as shown on the device.

"The time it takes to issue a ticket for one passenger is enough to collect fares from five passengers. That is why many people do not want to use it," he said.

Dhaka urban transport project

The Dhaka Urban Transport Project, funded by the World Bank, installed traffic signal lights at 70 intersections on 59 roads in the capital between 2004 and 2012 at a cost of approximately Tk25 crore. At the same time, countdown timers were installed at 30 important intersections in Dhaka at a cost of approximately Tk16 crore. None of these timers are currently operational.

Clean air and sustainable environment project

Another example of wastefulness in digitising Dhaka's signal system is the Clean Air and Sustainable Environment Project. The project was implemented by the Department of Environment, City Corporation, and Dhaka Transport Coordination Authority from 2009 to 2019.

Under this project, 100 automatic traffic signal systems were installed at a cost of approximately Tk100 crore, and solar panels were installed to keep them running.

However, these signal lights have not been effective in traffic management as drivers tend to ignore them. Except for the Gulshan-2 intersection, these automatic signal systems are not operational anywhere else. Solar power is also not functional anywhere else.

The Implementation Monitoring and Evaluation Division's (IMED) Impact Evaluation Report (2022-23) stated that the automatic system installed for traffic control in Dhaka has been ineffective. The money spent on this has been a complete waste according to the IMED report.

Traffic police officials have informed the IMED that the introduction of the intersection remote control signalling system has not been beneficial. They are not accustomed to this system. However, officials said that it reduces problems and makes traffic easier to control.

Dhaka integrated traffic management project

In 2015, the Dhaka Transport Coordination Authority undertook a project called "Dhaka Integrated Traffic Management" to install an automated traffic system. The authorities worked on an intelligent traffic system on an experimental basis at four intersections in Dhaka: Mohakhali, Gulshan-1, Paltan, and Fulbaria.

However, the project, which cost approximately Tk52 crore, got stuck in red tape at the implementation stage after some relevant equipment was stolen from the Dhaka South City Corporation's warehouse.

Attempts to reach Project Director Mohammad Rabiul Islam by phone for comment were unsuccessful.

However, there are signal lights in the capital at 100 points. Electricity bill, repair and maintenance of signal lamps at each point costs TK1 lakh per month. In total, Tk1 crore per month and Tk12 crore per year are being spent on Dhaka's signal lights.

Digital number plates

In 2012, the Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) introduced digital number plates for vehicles to improve road discipline, vehicle safety, modernisation, crime control, and customer service standards.

Despite being envisioned as a key tool for crime prevention, digital number plates can only identify vehicle owners, but lack the ability to track their location.

It can only be identified when it passes by a Radio Frequency Identification station. Additionally, users did not receive other promised benefits of the project.

Digital road from Banani to Airport

In fiscal year 2016-17, the country's first digital road was constructed over a six-kilometre stretch from Banani Railway Overpass to the airport. The bus stops on the road included LED screens, modern trash bins and other beautification initiatives.

The Roads and Highways Department supervised the construction of this digital road. However, the plants on the median have turned into overgrown bushes due to lack of maintenance, with the actual impact of this road not reflecting the purpose for which it was built.

Digital metres for CNG auto-rickshaws

CNG-powered auto-rickshaws have been operating in Dhaka city since late 2002. These vehicles are equipped with digital metres to ensure that passengers are not overcharged. The maximum fare is set on the digital metre to prevent passengers from being harassed over fares.

The current fare rate for CNG-run auto-rickshaws in Dhaka came into effect on 1 November 2015. According to regulations, these auto-rickshaws should charge fares in accordance with the metre.

However, passengers have to bargain on fares with drivers as the latter do not use the metres anymore. The digital metres have clearly receded into memory.

Digital buses

The digital bus initiative was launched in April 2014 with the idea of allowing passengers to stay connected to the internet highway even while stuck in traffic on Dhaka's roads. In addition, a vehicle tracking system was introduced, through which passengers could locate the buses.

Initially, this facility was launched on 15 BRTC AC buses with technical assistance from the Access to Information (a2i) programme of the Prime Minister's Office. However, this initiative proved unsustainable due to various reasons.

Expert opinions on digitalisation initiatives

Many of the digital initiatives in the capital's transportation sector have failed and many are yet to be implemented. Experts refer to unplanned urbanisation being the main cause of this failure.

Dr M Shamsul Haq, a transport specialist and professor at Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology's (BUET) Department of Civil Engineering, spoke to TBS about the failed bus digitisation project.

He said, "A rapid pass system was implemented. There were ideas about installing Wi-Fi and GPS. But when the bus drivers and helpers saw that they were not getting any extra income from this system, they would loiter around and not do their jobs properly. As a result, the project failed."

He went on to add, "The decision-makers are actually taking initiatives without solving the root problem. They often initiate digitisation projects to please the higher authorities despite the fact that other digital initiatives have not worked."

He said that if the problems had been identified before initiating the projects, the initiatives could have been properly implemented.

He added that the DNCC is currently implementing a pilot project in Gulshan-2 on smart traffic management. If it is successful, the project will be extended. Based on this result, the traffic management system will be implemented at six more intersections.

Dr Hadiuzzaman, a BUET professor and transport infrastructure specialist, said that the city's infrastructure needs to be overhauled. There is no alternative to decentralisation in this case. 

"Vigilance is needed regarding new buildings at intersections. The parking system needs to be strengthened. The capacity of intersections needs to be increased. Then these digital initiatives will work," the professor said.

Bangladesh Passengers' Welfare Association General Secretary Mozammel Haque Chowdhury stressed the importance of addressing long standing issues in the transport sector, such as the practice of leasing buses based on daily collection agreements.

Shahadat Biplob. Sketch: TBS

He suggested implementing a traffic prosecution system using CCTV cameras to deter extortion and illegal charges by drivers.

However, he added that the government and bus owners' associations are not paying heed to these issues, leading to the demise of passenger-friendly initiatives like e-ticketing.

Saiful Alam, General Secretary of Bangladesh road transport owners association, told TBS that all the digitisation initiatives taken for traffic are people friendly but not realistic. 

An overnight change is not possible to bring order to Dhaka's traffic system. No method will work if motor vehicles and non-motor vehicles travel together on any road. For this, there should be proper guidelines for its effectiveness. Transport owners, workers, and passengers all have to work together.