Bangladesh Jatri Kalyan Samity (BJKS) has put forward a 12-point recommendation, including a call to stop the registration of small vehicles like motorcycles, in an effort to reduce traffic congestion in Dhaka.
Secretary General Mozammel Haque Chowdhury presented these recommendations at a press conference held at Dhaka Reporters Unity on Sunday.
The event was themed, "Public transport crisis: The main source of Dhaka's terrible traffic congestion—city residents want relief."
Among the other recommendations by Jatri Kalyan Samity are introduction of improved city bus services and the creation of dedicated bus lanes through bus route rationalization; banning the movement of slow vehicles, including pedal rickshaws and easy bikes, from Dhaka's main road corridors; freeing footpaths for pedestrian use, with flyovers in the median of roads if necessary to facilitate easier movement; digitizing traffic signals and introducing a camera-based system for law enforcement, similar to those used in developed countries, to penalize traffic violations. The fines would be collected from the bank accounts of transport owners or drivers; prohibiting bike parking, loading, and unloading on main roads; enforcing the use of zebra crossings, foot overbridges, and underpasses for pedestrian crossings, and banning hand crossings.
The organization also called for the formation of a traffic congestion monitoring team, consisting of experts from the Dhaka Transport Coordination Authority (DTCA), Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC), and the traffic department. The team would be tasked with identifying congestion issues and providing immediate solutions.
In addition, they suggested exploring ways to keep Dhaka’s entrances free from traffic jams and proposed research-based adjustments to traffic signals at intersections. For instance, signals at smaller intersections with two or three lanes should be kept on for one to two minutes, while larger intersections with three or four lanes should have signals running for two to three minutes.
They also recommended the establishment of temporary terminals, such as turning the area near Gulistan Park into a terminal to ease congestion, and optimizing the use of existing bus bays for passenger boarding and alighting.
