Dhaka is struggling under the dual weight of chronic traffic congestion and escalating climate threats.
For the millions of residents, the daily gridlock is not just a logistical hurdle but a public health emergency that demands a paradigm shift in urban governance.
The health toll of our current urban management is alarming. Recent economic studies suggest Dhaka loses billions of dollars annually to traffic, but the human cost, manifested in chronic respiratory issues and stress-induced hypertension, is far higher.
My personal experience residing on Road 3, Dhanmondi, serves as a microcosm of this systemic failure. For years, arbitrary “one-way” restrictions, enforced by the whim of duty officers rather than scientific traffic planning, created man-made gridlock.
Residents were trapped in a cycle of noise and air pollution, where medical emergencies became life-threatening due to stationary traffic.
Despite repeated appeals, the situation remained unchanged until the post-August 5 shift, when student volunteers finally implemented a 'two-way' system that instantly alleviated the congestion.
This begs the question: Who takes responsibility for the years of health degradation suffered by citizens due to flawed, arbitrary planning?
True urban success requires innovative, grassroots-level solutions. We can draw inspiration from Vietnam, where the government promotes climate-friendly mobility by providing low-interest loans for scooters.
A similar, hassle-free credit facility for eco-friendly, small-scale transport in Dhaka could significantly reduce the number of private cars on the road.
Furthermore, we must embrace low-cost, high-impact environmental interventions. For instance, requiring all commercial and residential buildings to install rooftop sprinkler systems that spray water for 30 minutes daily could act as a massive natural air-scrubbing mechanism, drastically reducing dust and cooling the city’s microclimate at minimal cost.
Global models demonstrate that congestion is a policy choice, not an inevitability. In cities like Istanbul, Hanoi, and New Delhi, traffic flows smoothly because of strict lane discipline and organized public transport. In Dhaka, our buses habitually overtake one another, choking the entire road.
To build a climate-resilient city, we urgently need:
True urban success should not be measured by the speed of our vehicles, but by the quality of the air our children breathe and the accessibility of a healthy, green environment.
We must stop designing a city that merely accommodates gridlock and start building one that fosters life.
As we look toward future projects like the proposed subway, we must ensure that the mistakes of the past -- where planning was divorced from citizen well-being -- are never repeated.
If we fail to protect our biodiversity and climate today, we risk losing the very foundation of our existence. It is time for authorities to treat urban mobility as a public health mandate.
The future of Dhaka must be designed for people, not for the convenience of mismanagement.
Md Mizanul Hoque Chowdhury is Former Additional Secretary, Ministry of Environment,Forest and Climate Change, Bangladesh.