‘No cars on roads one day a week’

Environmental organisations and schools yesterday demanded private cars stop plying the roads one day a week to save fuel amid the ongoing energy crisis.

They made the demand at a programme held in front of the National Museum in the capital's Shahbagh.

Speakers at the event recommended increasing tax on import of private cars, refraining from building car-friendly infrastructure (elevated expressways, flyovers), and banning commutes to educational institutions by car.

The environmental activists said the energy, oil and gas crisis in Bangladesh has reached an alarming level and will increase in the days to come.

They added that due to the increasing use of private vehicles, the country's energy crisis may worsen. High use of private vehicles leads to fuel wastage; serious traffic congestion, as the vehicles occupy more space; noise and air pollution; and accidents.

Controlling private cars can significantly contribute to combating the energy crisis by preventing fuel wastage. It can also have a positive impact on health and environment, more specifically an appropriate atmosphere for walking and cycling.

Save the Environment Movement, Prottasa Madok Birodhi Songothon, Human Rights Development Center, Rayer Bazar High School, Dhaka Ideal Cadet School, Dhanmondi Kachikantha High School, Chayatal Bangladesh, The Institute of Wellbeing Bangladesh, Car Free Cities Alliance Bangladesh, Bangladesh Youth Climate Network, and Work for a Better Bangladesh Trust participated in the programme.