Thakurgaon central bus terminal: Now abandoned after prolonged disuse

The repeated reluctance of bus operators to use the Thakurgaon Central Bus Terminal on various pretexts, such as no power connection and drainage system, has left the terminal to gradually turn dilapidated in the absence of regular maintenance.

As a result, passengers are now having to go through inconveniences as they have to wait on roadsides under scorching heat or on muddy roads during heavy rains.

Besides, tickets are being sold by setting up temporary counters along the Thakurgaon-Dhaka highway at the behest of bus owners and workers' organisations, causing traffic jams.

At present, the terminal area has become a dumping ground for damaged vehicles.

Manir Uz Zaman, acting general secretary of the district motor owners' association, said they cannot use the terminal as it lacks many facilities.

For example, the terminal gets waterlogged when it rains in the absence of a drainage system, he also said.

Passengers are also unwilling to go to the terminal, he added.

"The municipality authorities have of late informed us that the terminal will be modernised so that the passengers can enjoy its benefits" Manir noted.

Locals and regular passengers said the terminal had all kinds of civic amenities at the terminal, from sitting arrangement to canteen to ticket counters to toilets to shops to tea stalls. But most of the facilities are now unusable owing to the negligence on the part of the authorities concerned.

A pasenger named Rafiqul Islam they toilets at the terminal have become too dirty to use owing to a lack of regular maintenance.

Md Asaduzzaman, another who travels from Thakurgaon to different districts for various purposes, said they sometimes have to stay for a long time at the terminal while waiting for a bus.

It is the only central bus terminal in the district built at Tk1.5 crore on five bighas of land in the bus stand area. Initially, interdistrict buses used to leave from the terminal after it was inaugurated in 2003. Unfortunately, the district bus owners association stopped using it after a few months, citing the lack of necessary facilities.

Thakurgaon Municipal Mayor Anjuman Ara said they have taken initiatives to renovate and modernise the terminal under two projects to make it operational again.

Thakurgaon Deputy Commissioner Mahbubur Rahman said the district administration discussed with all concerned regarding the matter and he hopes that the terminal will be operational soon.