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are now single-lane, causing massive tailbacks, he said.

It sometimes takes 14–15 hours to reach Sunamganj via Sylhet, even though people use an alternative route from Ghorashal to avoid the Kachpur-Gausia stretch, said Mohammad Abul Khaer, a veteran driver with Ena Paribahan.

An 11-kilometre stretch from Ashuganj to Sarail has become the epicentre of traffic woes.

Though part of the Dhaka-Sylhet highway, it falls under a separate initiative: the 50.58-kilometre Ashuganj Riverport-Akhaura Landport Four-Lane Highway Development Project.

Launched in 2017 with a revised budget of Tk 5,791 crore from India’s second Line of Credit (LOC-II), the project was awarded to Afcons Infrastructure of India.

However, progress stalled after the Awami League government fell on August 5 last year and the Indian contractors and workers left due to security concerns.

This left the Ashuganj-Sarail section in ruins.

“The worst suffering for commuters is at Ashuganj and Sarail,” said AKM Fazlul Karim, additional chief engineer of RHD.

While work on the section is expected to resume within months with the return of Indian contractors, the rest of the highway remains in shambles in the absence of basic maintenance for years.

“We cannot do much maintenance as we are low on funds and the old road must be broken up,” said the project director Karim.

He said he has requested repair funds from the higher authorities.

The dilapidated condition has forced commuters to opt for air or rail travel to save time.

Officials from US-Bangla Airlines, Air Astra and Novoair reported surging demand for tickets on the Dhaka-Sylhet route.

US-Bangla Airlines is now operating six daily flights with more than 90 to 95 percent load factor since last week, said Kamrul Islam, general manager for public relations.

Novoair has a 100 percent load factor on their flights, said Sohail Majid, the airline’s director of marketing and sales.

Both of Air Astra’s daily flights tend to be fully booked, said Sakib Hasan Shovo, the airline’s deputy manager for public relations.

Railways are also under pressure.

“Thousands are traveling by train due to the highway’s condition -- many are traveling without tickets, and we are allowing it on humanitarian grounds,” said Md Shuboktagin, general manager (east) of Bangladesh Railway.

Mohiuddin Arif, divisional railway manager, said they have been facing severe passenger pressure since July.

“Even after adding carriages and issuing standing tickets, we are struggling to meet demand,” he added.

Rashidul Hasan and Mashuk Hridoy contributed to the report