Editorial
Road congestion
The menace is back with more intensity
THINGS are back to square one as far as traffic management is concerned. After the short-lived respite during Eid holidays the everyday urban menace called traffic congestion is back with a bang. Throughout the week thousands of vehicles of every description are to be seen clogging the main roads and alleyways of the metropolis from morning till midnight. While traffic lights keep turning from red to green and back in sheer futility, exasperated policemen try to control the burgeoning number of vehicles with their hands. Alternative system of modern and effective signalling is yet to be installed to address the situation.
The problems of traffic congestion so far identified are: old and unfit vehicles slowing down traffic flow, roadside parking of vehicles, violation of traffic signals and overtaking on narrow roads. None of these problems has been addressed properly, and to make things worse, thousands of unfit vehicles that had been hauled away by the police before Eid have now been released from custody for reasons beyond our understanding. Reportedly, the owners of the unfit vehicles had vowed not to ply them in Dhaka but in reality they have hit the roads to worsen the situation.
It is common knowledge that unless and until old, unfit vehicles are removed/destroyed permanently and the relevant authorities stop registration of all such vehicles, the traffic condition will not improve any bit. The existing laws have to be enforced without any fear or favour and new laws have to be enacted, if the authorities are sincere about bringing sanity on the roads.
The very fact that hundreds of new vehicles are joining the fleet on the roads everyday should make the authorities rise to the situation and motivate policy makers to initiate effective action plans before the city bogs down completely. At the same time, the government should contemplate construction of new roads, widen the existing ones, and build overpasses to ease the situation.
The capital city is the hub of diplomacy, commerce and education. Therefore, under no circumstances can its roads be allowed to remain dysfunctional for hours together.
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