Major highways and city roads yesterday witnessed long tailbacks as people came out in large numbers after getting a reprieve from the back-to-back hartal and communication blockade of the BNP-led 18-party alliance.
The streets were affected by a triple whammy of dense fogs, swarming vehicles and haphazard parking in the morning, but there were little signs of easing up even after the fogs lifted later in the day.
There were long queues of vehicles packed with passengers around almost every intersections in the capital, while its entry points were clogged by in-bound and out-bound long-route busses and trucks.
Comilla witnessed a 36-kilometre tailback on both sides of the highway between Chandina and Daudkandi toll plaza, caused by heavy fogs and high concentration of vehicles, especially goods-laden trucks, reports our Comilla correspondent.
The passengers of a Dhaka-bound bus from Chandina said they had started for the capital around 6am but couldn’t get past the upazila periphery even after four hours.
Mohammad Sohel, driver of a covered van, said it had taken him over five hours to drive the 27 kilometres from Chandina to Gouripur. “It was not totally unexpected. People got a two-day break before another spell of blockade begins on Sunday; naturally, they will try to make the most of it.”
A 60-kilometre tailback was witnessed on the road between Comilla’s Iliotganj to Narayanganj’s Meghna Bridge.
“The jam ensued after some vehicles got stuck in the foggy weather early in the morning, and by 10am it stretched over 60 kilometres,” said Sargent Md Saiful Islam of Bhoberchar Highway police camp.
Meanwhile, a slow traffic movement was reported at the Hatikumrul Highway of Sirajganj, on both sides of Bangabandhu Bridge, early in the day. “It got worse as the day wore on,” said Ali Farid Ahmed, officer in charge of Hitikumrul Highway police station.
The situation was no better on the waterways. Ferry operations on the Mawa-Keurakandi route were suspended because of dense fog on Thursday night, leading to long queues of vehicles waiting to cross the Padma.
Ferry crossing at the integral point to South from Dhaka resumed after 11 hours around 10am, but there was already a long jam with buses and trucks from 21 districts stuck on both sides of the river.
Passengers on launches, speed boats and trawlers had to suffer similar delays because of the fog and resultant tailbacks.
City’s Situation
Traffic pressure in the capital was higher compared with the past few days. Commuters had to wait for long hours to get into their desired vehicles and reach their destinations.
“I have been waiting for more than 20 minutes for a bus from Sukrabad to Azimpur. I tried several times to get into one but failed each time,” said Nahid Jahan, a Master’s student of Eden Mahila College.
A similar situation was seen around important intersections like the Sonargaon, Farmgate, Bijoynagar, Shahbagh, and Gulistan.
A traffic sergeant posted at the Panthapath intersection, seeking anonymity, said jams in these points were in part contributed to by the Awami League rally at the Suhrawardy Udyan, which was organised to observe the homecoming day of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.
