The second day of the dragnet against unfit vehicles saw public transport gradually returning to the streets after spending the previous day in hiding from mobile courts.
But commuters still found it difficulty in finding transport on the second day of the joint drive by the Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA), Home Ministry and Road Transport and Bridges Ministry.
Thousands struggled to find buses or human hauliers in the capital city, even though commuters said there were more vehicles available yesterday than the day before.
Unfit buses and vehicles without certification, hidden away on day one of the drive, were slowly returning to their routes yesterday.
Mokbul Miah, a private bus driver on the Badda-Mirpur route, explained that since he had been cited for not having a legal driving license on the first day of the drive, the fear factor had disappeared and he had returned to work.
Public transport vehicles that looked fit on the outside but either lacked fitness certificates or actually were not up to standard, nevertheless took their chances and returned to their routes, traffic police sources said.
The mood of commuters remained grim at many of the main public transport junctions, because transport services were not back to normal.
Meherunnessa, a senior citizen trying to get a bus at Karwan Bazar angrily said: “This is a problem between the bus owners and the authorities, but they all have private cars so they do not care who suffers.”
Nurun Nahar, a private sector office worker forced to take a CNG-auto-rickshaw when her bus failed to show up, said a protracted drive would be financially untenable for her and thousands like her.
CNG-auto-rickshaws and peddle-rickshaws alike were reportedly cashing in on the windfall by hiking up their fares.
Mobile courts and traffic police yesterday checked vehicles for their fitness certificates and drivers for valid driving licenses during the second day of the drive. Commuters and drivers said the ad hoc checks were causing traffic jams around the city. Police said the checks were routine.
The Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Kader requested citizens to be patient so that the drive could be successful.
BRTA Chairman Nazrul Islam told the Dhaka Tribune the drive was would be successfully implemented if law enforcement officials strictly maintained their responsibilities.
By the close of the second day of a government drive to net unfit vehicles yesterday, fines against offenders topped Tk16 lakh, 21 people were sent to jail and over five dozen vehicles were slated for demolition. Bijoy Bhushan Paul, BRTA director (enforcement), reported that his department had filed 2,249 cases, imposed fines amounting to Tk1,671,410 and sent 21 people to jail nationwide since the drive began.
Sixty-five cars nationwide had been sent to be demolished after they were deemed unfit by authorities, he said.
Yesterday, near the Engineering Institute in Dhaka, Magistrate Tarique ul Islam filed 16 cases and fined offenders Tk13,300. Another mobile court at Jatrabari led by Magistrate Sarwar Alam yesterday filed 31 cases and imposed fines of Tk39,600.
In Gazipur yesterday, 285 cases were filed and Tk18,500 in fines were imposed on offenders during the drive. A further 264 cases were filed against illegally parked vehicles and 39 were towed away by police. A Gazipur-Dhaka BRTC bus driven by an unlicensed driver was detained.
Another BRTA mobile court was set up yesterday near the golf club in the capital, Bijoy Bhushan Paul said.
