Slight uptick in long-haul bus operations on Day 2 of ongoing blockade
Buses are dispatched as soon as they get enough passengers that barely cover the expenses
On the second day of the fourth phase of the current 48-hour blockade led by the BNP, Jamaat and their allies, there has been a slight increase in the operations of mid and long-distance buses at the Mohakhali Inter-district Bus terminal.
Twenty-five buses of the Ena Paribahan have been dispatched to Mymensingh from Mohakhali until 3 am in the afternoon, said Iman, the counter representative of the transport.
"Under normal circumstances, Ena operates 100 trips from Dhaka to Mymensingh. Yesterday, there were 45 trips, and today it will be more than 50," he further told The Business Standard.
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Besides Mymensingh, buses operate routes to destinations like Jamalpur, Sherpur, Netrokona, Kishoreganj, Tangail, and Narayanganj from Mohakhali.
Most bus counters for these destinations have been open on Monday afternoon.
However, the lower-than-usual presence of passengers has resulted in less buses being dispatched, despite the readiness of transport owners and staff.
Arif, a counter-boy of the Shahjalal Paribahan bus that operates to Mohanganj via Netrakona, said, "Four buses have left since morning today."
Highlighting that only two buses were operational until noon the previous day, he said "Despite blockade, people are now coming out for travel"
Meanwhile, Abul Hosain, the counter manager of Sonar Bangla Paribahan for the Dhaka-Sherpur route, said, "Only one bus left until three in the afternoon."
"People are still in fear, fewer passengers are coming. We ourselves are scared after one of our buses was set on fire a few days back," he explained.
However, the number of buses departing for Kishoreganj is also significantly lower than usual.
Under normal circumstances for Ananya Paribahan, one bus departs every 10 minutes from Mohakhali.
"I came in the morning, but there were no passengers. So I went home for lunch. Even after returning, there are still not enough passengers. How can I start a bus?" said Manwar, the counter manager of this bus.
Meanwhile, Abul Kalam, the president of Mohakhali Inter-district Bus Owners' Association, said that at least one bus for each destination is ready to leave the terminal at any time.
He added, "Buses are dispatched as soon as they get enough passengers that barely cover the expenses"
