Ensure discipline on roads for smooth Eid travel: Obaidul Quader

Road, Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader on Sunday directed the Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) and police to ensure discipline on roads and highways to ease the travelling of homegoers during this Eid-ul-Fitr.

"We have not been able to implement discipline on the road, nor have we implemented it in the transport sector. The biggest challenge is to maintain discipline, which will reduce traffic jams and accidents," he said at a view-exchange meeting on the initiatives for hazard-free Eid travel at the BRTA head office in the capital's Banani. 

The minister expressed his fear that due to the ongoing Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) project, the Airport Road in the capital, especially Gazipur, may become a challenge in ensuring a smooth Eid journey.

Quader also asked the authorities concerned to take necessary steps for uninterrupted flow of traffic on Elenga-Sirajganj-Bogura Highway, and in Gazipur, during the festival.

The minister also instructed the police to take legal action if any VIP uses the wrong lane of the road.

As per the decisions announced in the meeting, all fuel stations and CNG pumps will remain open for 24 hours -- for a total of 13 days -- five days before Eid-ul-Fitr and the next seven days. Goods-laden trucks cannot ply the highway for three days before Eid. However, motorbikes will be allowed on the highway during the festival. 

Road Transport and Highways Division (RTHD) Secretary ABM Amin Ullah Nuri said that the roads and highways of the country are now in a better condition than at any time in the past.

"We have been vigilant to ensure that there is no public suffering anywhere on the road. Necessary instructions have been given at the field level," he added.

The secretary further said that mobile courts will be operated for the seven days before Eid-ul-Fitr and the next seven days in 46 traffic spots prone to jams in several districts, including Dhaka Metropolitan, Dhaka district and neighboring districts. 

During Eid, a task force formed of various law enforcement agencies will discharge duty at the terminals of the metropolitan cities. Mobile court vigilance will be there to control extra fares, Amin Ullah said further.

He also urged the leaders of the BGMEA and the BKMEA to give holidays to the garment workers in phases, instead of in a single day, to avoid pressure of passengers.

At the meeting, Mozammel Haque Chowdhury, secretary general of the Bangladesh Jatri Kalyan Samity, urged the authorities to prevent the anarchy over transport fares during Eid.

Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun, Inspector General of Police, also urged garment owners to give holidays to workers in phases, mentioning that they leave the capital with hundreds of vehicles at once, creating huge congestion.

He also called for necessary measures to prevent slowdown of toll collection at toll plazas during Eid travel.

Md Monjur Hossain, secretary of the Bridges Division, said that efforts are on to introduce automation in toll collection and the number of toll collection booths will be increased.