Bangladesh’s portion of the Asian Highway fails to meet the standards of quality required of it, according to the transport division of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UN-ESCAP).
A recently published report, a copy of which has been sent to the Road Transport and Highways Division, said two of the three local highways that are part of the Asian Highway network are supposed to meet international standards while the third should meet regional standards.
Yet not a single kilometre of the Bangladeshi roadways that are part of the Asian Highway meets the required standards, according to the UN-ESCAP report.
The report pointed to negligence on the part of the Bangladesh authorities as a cause of the sub-standard conditions of the local lengths of the highway.
But MAN Siddique, the secretary of the Road Transport and Highway Division, disputed this, saying: “We have not been negligent in constructing the highways. We are working to ensure that international standards are maintained.”
To encourage international and regional trade, UN-ESCAP has worked to improve Asia’s international highway network since 1959. Currently, the Asian Highway network spans some 32 countries, with Bangladesh signing on in 2009.
The network is divided into five classes – Primary, I, II, III and Below III – that are determined according to road design standards.
Primary refers to access-controlled highways used exclusively by automobiles. Access to the access-controlled highways is at grade-separated interchanges only. Mopeds, bicycles and pedestrians are not allowed.
The Asian Highway runs along three routes for 1,741km in Bangladesh, but fails to meet international standards.
Highways AH 1 and AH 2 are considered international highways, while AH 41 is considered a regional highway.
Yet a mere 72 kilometres of the 1,741km Bangladeshi portion of the Asian Highway is a four-lane highway.
The four-lane portion does not meet the standards for the Primary category, but is regarded as the only stretch of class I highway in the country. The remaining 1,553km, or 89% of the highway, meets class II standards.
Highway AH 2 runs 805.59km from Banglabanda to Tamabil via Joydebpur, Dhaka, Kanchpur and Sylhet.
For 291.34km, the highway overlaps with AH 1, whose 514.25km route links Benapol to Myanmar via Kanchpur, Comilla, Chittagong, Cox’s Bazar and Teknaf.
Regional highway AH 41 has a length of 744.43km, connecting Khulna to Chittagong port via Kanchpur and Daudkandi.
Under the Asian Highway network, China, Japan, Iran, South Korea, Turkey, Singapore, Thailand and Malaysia have built advanced highways that meet international standards.
