6 months' jail or Tk 200 in fine
Amid a sorry state of footbridges and footpaths in the city, the Dhaka Metropolitan Police is going to impose a fine or jail term on jaywalkers on Kazi Nazrul Islam Avenue from Tuesday.
DMP Commissioner Benazir Ahmed yesterday said mobile courts led by magistrates will be set up for a week to check jaywalking on the stretch of Kazi Nazrul Islam Avenue between Farmgate Police Box and Hotel Ruposhi Bangla intersection.
A jaywalker will either be fined Tk 200 or sentenced to six months in prison, he told reporters at a press conference at the DMP Media Centre.
“It's a pilot project. If it proves successful, the DMP will gradually introduce the project elsewhere in the city,” he added.
Police, said Benazir, have already launched a three-day awareness campaign on the project. Traffic police will use hoardings, banners and festoons to create awareness among the pedestrians during the campaign.
The aim of the move was not to fine pedestrians, but to create awareness among people, mentioned the DMP chief. “Jaywalking not only puts pedestrians' lives at risk, but also creates chaos on roads.”
Visiting the area yesterday, this correspondent found that some traffic sergeants and constables were not aware of the DMP move. “I didn't receive any wireless message from the control room regarding the campaign,” said a traffic sergeant at Farmgate.
Only a few signs reading “Jaywalking is a punishable offence” were put up at the Karwan Bazar and Farmgate intersections by the Traffic Division (west) of DMP. Some pedestrians said they saw the signs being put up in the afternoon. Some small placards were placed on lampposts in the area.
Siddiqur Rahman, who regularly crosses the Kazi Nazrul Islam Avenue, said police should have made the announcement at least 15 days earlier and run a major campaign on televisions, newspapers and the road before setting up the mobile courts here.
“Usually, I avoid jaywalking but sometimes you cannot desist from doing it when you find it difficult to access the footbridge,” he mentioned.
FOOTBRIDGES IN BAD SHAPE
There are six footbridges and an underpass on the stretch of the road between the Farmgate Police Box and Hotel Ruposhi Bangla intersection.
The footbridge next to Ananda Cinema was blocked by Dhaka North City Corporation on July 18 after a physical inspection of the structure by Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology.
There is no possibility of reopening the footbridge anytime soon as no renovation work is in sight.
To cross the road, pedestrians at Farmgate need to use any of the two footbridges apart.
The two footbridges are also in a poor state. Renovation work is underway at the footbridge in front of The Daily Star Centre. Sidewalks under the footbridge are partly occupied by construction materials, forcing pedestrians to walk on the road.
The sidewalks near the footbridge at Farmgate intersection have been occupied illegally by hawkers for years. Due to this illegal occupation of footpaths, many opt for crossing the road on foot, said pedestrian Abul Kalam.
Mohammad Palash, a private company employee, said the DMP initiative would be fruitful only when civic sense grows in general. There are several illegal hawker establishments in the area while cars are frequently parked on footpaths, he pointed out.
Although in good shape, people are reluctant to use the footbridges near the Farmgate Police Box and at Paribagh.
Asked, a pedestrian near the police box said he could save time by crossing the road on foot as he would have to pass through hawkers' shops near the Al Raji Hospital to access the footbridge.
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