A 13km traffic jam on the Comilla-bound lane of the Dhaka-Chittagong highway caused severe suffering for passengers and drivers on Friday, leaving long-distance buses, trucks and other vehicles stranded for hours.
The congestion began around 7:30am after a covered van broke down on the approach to the Meghna-Gomti Bridge in Daudkandi, disrupting traffic towards Comilla. As the number of vehicles grew, the tailback stretched nearly 13km through the Gazaria section.
Vehicles were moving slowly or stopping intermittently at several points along the highway, according to local residents and police.
Shahabuddin, a bus passenger travelling to his village home, said he regularly faced delays while travelling between Dhaka and his hometown, particularly on holidays and during family occasions. He questioned when a lasting solution to the recurring congestion would come.
Truck driver Sirajul Islam Pintu said it took him one and a half hours to reach Bhaterchar bus stand after getting stuck in traffic near Jamaldi.
Another truck driver, Shakil Mia, said he spent around an hour travelling from Jamaldi to Anarpura bus stand.
Moniruzzaman, in-charge of the Bhaberchar Highway Police Outpost, said the breakdown of the covered van near the bridge had caused the congestion.
Authorities were working to remove the vehicle, and traffic could return to normal within an hour, he said.
Passengers and transport workers have long faced delays on different stretches of the highway, with commuters calling for quicker removal of broken-down vehicles and measures to ensure smoother traffic movement.