Passenger rights body fears woeful Eid journey

A passenger welfare group has expressed concerns over the upcoming Eid holiday journey saying that the roads, railways and waterways are not prepared to handle the rush.

A total of 50 million people will make around 150 million trips across the country, Bangladesh Jatri Kalyan Samity said at a press conference at Dhaka Reporters’ Unity today.

“The transport sectors are not prepared to handle the rush ahead of Eid-ul-Fitr,” claimed Mozammel Haque Chowdhury, secretary general of the association.

Around 1.5 crore people will leave the capital and the rest will travel through inter-district routes during the six days before and ahead of the Eid.

In overall, around 40 percent roads and highways are in deplorable condition, he said.

Dilapidated roads, long tailbacks, and speeding tendency of bus drivers to cope up with the trip numbers will be the main reasons for the sufferings of the holidaymakers and accidents as observed in the past, the platform said.

The platform also came up with some recommendations to ease up the journey of the holidaymakers – demolishing illegal structures from highways, put a stop to charging extra fares, opening all booths at toll plazas, and prohibiting slow-moving vehicles from highways.