The incessant rains in the past two weeks have left roads in different parts of Chittagong in a dilapidated condition, compounding the sufferings of people.
Numerous potholes have appeared on roads, putting people at greater risk of facing accidents and mishaps and also causing terrible tailbacks.
The rains have also damaged road surfaces, particularly of the busy roads.
Chittagong City Corporation (CCC) sources said around 250 kilometres of roads are now in a rundown state out of the 800km road network under the CCC’s jurisdiction.
Chittagong Port link Road, Agrabad access Road, GEC intersection, Zakir Hossain Road, Bahaddarhat Road, Muradpur Road, Oxygen Road and New Market Road remain in the worst condition.
Regular commuters of the roads have been compelled to take alternative routes to reach their destinations, causing transportation costs to go up.
The connecting roads in different areas are also in an awful state, thanks to the indifference of the CCC.
Even the rickshaw pullers are reluctant to drive on the roads that remain in a poor condition.
Kamrul Islam Bappy, an engineering student at University of Science and Technology Chittagong who lives in the Port colony, told the Dhaka Tribune it is almost an everyday struggle to use the Port link Road which is riddled with potholes.
“I feel literally exhausted when I try to hire a rickshaw for 5-10 minutes but to no avail,” he said. Mustafiz Billah Sifat, a final-year student of the Public Administration Department at Chittagong University, said the road in Shantibagh area where he lives had been heavily damaged in the torrential rains.
CCC Superintendent Engineer Anwar Hossain told the Dhaka Tribune the city corporation had already began patching up 180 kilometres of road.
“As part of repair, we are filling potholes with bricks and bitumen as a temporary measure. It will at least improve traffic movement for the time being,” he said.
“The city corporation mayor has directed to repair the 10km Zakir Hossain Road immediately as the South Africa cricket team will be arriving in Chittagong. We are now repairing the road.”