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Level crossings unsafe

Govt plans to build 6 overpasses; but no immediate solution to chaotic traffic, reckless driving

M Abul Kaiam Azad
The rapidly worsening traffic congestion in Dhaka city, which is eating up precious working hours of commuters, is unlikely to ease within a year or two, due to a lack of implementation of supportive city infrastructure projects, and a virtual breakdown of traffic law enforcement.
While an evolving urban culture has been adding increasing numbers of motor vehicles in the capital over the recent years, successive governments failed to urgently implement city infrastructure projects on time.
At the same time, an overwhelming number of recklessly driven public trans-
ports contribute to the intense traffic jams and the lack of road safety.
The government now has some shortterm initiatives like construction of overpasses and underpasses for vehicles, connecting roads, bypasses, and east-west roads, but none of those initiatives has been implemented so far, and might also take years to be completed.
Against such a backdrop, officials Involved in traffic management sat for a meeting in the communications ministry yesterday to discuss ways to ease the nagging traffic jam immediately. The meeting was held a day after a speeding train rammed into a bus at Moghbazar level crossing, leaving eight people
severely injured.
Railway officials said had there been an overpass or underpass, the accident could have been easily avoided. "We've decided to construct six overpasses for vehicles, al six risky level crossings in the city," said Belayet Hossain, director general of Bangladesh Railway.
The level crossings where the overpasses or underpasses will be built are at Moghbazar, Staff Road of Dhaka Cantonment, FDC, Malibagh, Jurain, and Saycdabad.
"There are several other risky level crossings where overpasses or underpasses should be built, but initially we are
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going to build the six," the railway DG said.
"Too much traffic, reckless driving, and non-compliance with traffic rules are the main reasons behind such accidents, " said Belayet, adding that time and again they warned pedestrians and drivers to follow traffic rules at level crossings, but nobody pays any heed.
Due to reckless driving and a lack of enforcement of traffic rules, accidents are occurring . frequently in the capital, which has only 7 percent of its area for roads while the normal intema-(jnial standard is to have 25 percent. At least one person is killed in accidents daily in the capital.
According to official statistics, more than 2 lakh buses, trucks, and cars now operate on the city roads, while about 20,000 new vehicles on an average are getting on the roads every year. A whopping 40,000 motor vehicles were added to the city traffic in fiscal year 2007-'08 alone.
According to experts, illegal parking, illegal occupation of roads, non-compliance with traffic rules, a lack traffic rule enforcement, a lack of coordination among different agencies and ministries for managing city traffic, reckless driving, unplanned urbanisation, and frequent changes of policies, are the major factors behind the present dismal situation.
There are 30 rail crossings in the capital through which trains pass 84 times a day, contributing to the nagging traffic jam, but rail officials deny the allegation.
"I don't agree that the level crossings are responsible for gridlock, rather around 1,000 passengers are being transported by each train, reducing pressure on city traffic," Belayet told The Daily Star yesterday.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina earlier directed the communications ministry, and Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) to take necessary measures to ease the city's traffic congestion. But the situation continues to worsen by the day.
"We've identified some short-term measures which we will implement in the quickest possible time to improve the traffic condition in the city," Communications Minister Syed Abul Hossain told reporters after the meeting.
He said every department and agency of the government have been asked to implement already decided measures without any delay.
The meeting decided to form a coordination committee involving experts from Dhaka City Corporation (DCC), Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkhya (Rajuk), the communications ministry, roads and highway department, and the police department.
"One day we will have metro rails, mono rails, or electronic rails, but those are long-term solutions, we have to build some overpasses, underpasses, connecting roads, and bypasses immediately to rescue people from the ongoing hellish situa-tion on the roads," Communications Secretary
ASM Ali Kabir said.
A communications ministry official told the meeting. "People get stuck in intolerable gridlock They are forced to wait inside vehicles for hours on their way to and from workplaces. The situation is turning from bad to worse, wasting valuable time in this high-speed age, and rising people's fuel cost."
Another official said govern -ment agencies and departments are not doing their parts.
"We have, ttf'r^dtire'the number of small vehicles like cars, CNG-driven autorickshaws, and minibuses, and replace them with large double-decker buses as an immediate measure to ease the traffic congestion," Additional Executive Director of Dhaka Transport Co-ordination Board (DTCB) SM Saleh Uddin told The Daily Star yesterday.
He suggested a thorough change in bus routes. "Presently, bus routes are assigned haphazardly without any scien -tific study, which is a major reason for the chaotic situation on roads," he said adding, "A study is being carried out on the matter."
On policy change, the railway DG said the past Awami League government in 2001 took an initiative for metro rails, but the successive BNP-led alliance government scrapped it.
The immediate past caretaker government approved a 20-year Strategic Transport Plan in June 2008 to establish an integrated environment friendly traffic management system for greater Dhaka.
The plan includes introduction of 17,400 square kilometres of water and surface ways in Dhaka and neighbouring Narayanganj, Narsinghdi, Munshiganj, Gazipur, and Manikganj while metro train services, elevated motorways, Bus Rapid Transit (BRT), roads connecting the east of the capital to the west, flyovers, footbridges, new roads, and repair of damaged thoroughfares are some of the other features of the plan. But there has been hardly any headway in implementing that plan.