The traffic situation in Dhaka city is deplorable, worsening at the rate of (they say) 100 new cars on the road per day, is an understatement. In reality, it now takes over two hours to get from, say, Gulshan 2 to Dhanmandi Russel Square. That is what I experienced last week. I was not walking for sure. There are of course worse scenarios and every one has a tale to tell, what with hours of waiting at the end of a long tail.

Yes, you are reading it right, though general knowledge and common sense lead us to the opposite and that is the problem. Transport planning and management is not general knowledge and common sense. It is a complex multi-disciplinary science and need scientific research to solve the problems. Since early 1990s several studies (Dhaka Integrated Transport Study, DITS; Dhaka Urban Transport Plan, DUTP and Strategic Transport Plan for Dhaka, STP) were taken by government to solve the traffic problem in Dhaka. The latest in the line is controversial Strategic Transport Plan prepared and accepted by government despite vigorous opposition from professionals and civil society. Interestingly data of STP does not even support flyovers and subway in Dhaka.