Inter-District Buses: Govt plans 4 terminals on city fringes

The government has primarily selected four sites on the periphery of the capital to set up four bus terminals to stop inter-district buses from entering the city.

After setting up these four terminals, it will phase out the three existing inter-district terminals at Mohakhali, Gabtoli and Sayedabad, which will become city bus terminals under the new system.

The four new terminals will be built at Savar's Birulia and Hemayetpur, Keraniganj's Teghria and at Kanchpur.

The move was made to stop inter-district buses from entering Dhaka city, which worsens the traffic congestion, said the two city corporation mayors while visiting one of the spots in Savar yesterday.

With an aim to increase discipline in the capital's public transport, the government in 2018 had formed a 10-member bus route rationalisation committee to bring all public buses under a fixed number of companies.

Dhaka South City Corporation Mayor Sheikh Fazle Noor Taposh, who led the committee, said it had proposed 10 locations for inter-district bus terminals earlier, selected four of them and visited Birulia in Savar yesterday to inspect the location.

Taposh said they think four terminals can be accepted and they will also visit three other proposed locations.

"We will make a decision on it in the next meeting of the bus route rationalisation committee in January after visiting all four locations," he said.

Taposh said they will send the proposal to the ministry concerned to make a final decision.

"Our main target is to set up bus terminals on the periphery of Dhaka to reduce pressure on the city," he said.

In other countries, inter-district buses do not enter the city but in Dhaka there are three inter-district bus terminals and inter-district buses using the terminals creates traffic congestion, the DSCC mayor said.

But the city's bus terminals are not effective, which leads to bus drivers parking on the street and further worsening traffic congestion and contributing to the chaotic situation in the city, he said.

"We want to bring the whole transport system under discipline and these proposed bus terminals are part of it," he said.

Taposh said they are continuing their activities so that they can prepare a master plan by next year.

DNCC Mayor Md Atiqul Islam said because of the new bus terminals on the capital's periphery, inter-district buses will not be able to enter the city.

He said the public transport vehicles operating in Dhaka will stay inside the city while inter-district buses will stop at certain fixed places.

After the bus route rationalisation system is implemented, inter-district buses will not get permission to enter the city, he added.

Atiq said they have decided to bring all public buses of Ghatarchar-Motijheel route under a single company. Currently, more than 160 buses owned by 29 people are running on the route.

"We want to bring the city's whole traffic system under a disciplined system, and as part of the government's initiative of bus route franchise system, we are going to start the bus service on Ghatarchar-Motijheel route from April 1 [next year]," he said.

Bus owners and transport workers are also helping the authorities implement their initiative, he added.