PM’s directives on safe roads fall on deaf ears

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s directives for taking initiatives to make roads and highways in Bangladesh safer seems to have failed as the first two months of this year has seen no let off in the number of accidents and casualties. Government directives, higher court orders, and countrywide student protests have all gone in vain, as safe road still remains limited to empty words of those in authority, according to road safety campaigners.

Amid the alleged inaction of the authorities concerned, pedestrians, commuters and passengers continue to be victims of road crashes and reckless driving in Dhaka and elsewhere in the country. In the wake of a massive student protest in 2018, the PMO had asked the authorities concerned to take measures against underage and unlicensed drivers in Dhaka’s public transportation system.

During a Cabinet meeting on June 25, 2018, the Prime Minister had issued a set of directives to ensure safety on the roads and reinforce traffic discipline across the country, in order to reduce the number of accidents. Her directives included proper work hours for long-haul drivers, mandatory training for drivers and assistants in public transport services, service centres and resting rooms at regular intervals on highways, and strict monitoring to ensure everyone followed traffic rules.

However, road safety campaigners claim that the authorities concerned have turned a deaf ear to the directives as unlicensed drivers with unfit vehicles continue to ply the roads, putting the lives of pedestrians and commuters at risk.

According to statistics, the picture looks very grimy. The death toll in road accidents in 2019 exceeded the previous year’s by nearly 18 per cent. In 2020, the statistics have become worse. In January alone, at least 445 people were reportedly killed and 834 others injured in 340 road accidents across the country.

In February, 534 people were killed and 1,169 injured in 504 incidents of road accidents, according to the road traffic monitoring cell of Bangladesh Jatri Kalyan Samity, a passenger welfare association.

Among the victims, 99 were drivers, 187 pedestrians, 62 women, 71 students, 45 transport workers, 54 children, 13 leaders of various political parties, two freedom fighters, 11 teachers, and one engineer. The report also said that injuries from road accidents increased by 2.45 per cent compared to

January, while road accidents were down by 5.35 per cent and death rate went down by 2.43 per cent.

According to the report, reckless driving, overtaking, unfit vehicles, carelessness of passengers and pedestrians, unskilled drivers, and no enforcement of traffic rules are among the reasons behind the accidents.

About the PM’s directive, the authorities claim that directives regarding drivers’ rest every five hours of driving and alternative drivers for long-distance transports have already been implemented. However, senior transport leaders said it would take more time to implement the directives as there was a shortage of drivers.

Meanwhile, directives regarding training facilities for drivers and their assistants, using seatbelts while travelling, and following traffic signals are yet to be implemented for lack of infrastructure.

No major initiative except one inter-ministerial meeting has been held so far to fix the action plans for implementing the directives.

When it comes to training, according to the BRTA, there are 120 registered driving training schools, 174 licensed instructors, and 17 driving training institutes under the Bangladesh Road Transport Corporation. But these are inadequate to train such a large number of drivers.

Apart from luxurious and in-built buses, there are no seatbelts for drivers and passengers on buses. Seatbelts are also absent in trucks. Transport insiders alleged that though there are seatbelts for drivers in buses, the workers in most cases remove them for making the seat more comfortable. A senior leader of Bangladesh Road Transport Workers’ Federation said the proposed rest shelters would actually be suitable for goods-laden transport workers as they could take rest when they needed it. But in the case of bus drivers, he argued, if they were to get down at resting places, it would be difficult for them to return to the source point of the journey.

However, there is no update on the BRTA website about the number of unfit vehicles plying on the streets. On July 24 last year, in a report submitted to the High Court, the authorities, however, asserted that 479,320 vehicles registered with BRTA did not have fitness certificates.

Besides, even many vehicles with fitness certificates are actually not fit for plying on the roads. This is also partly because of the manpower crisis at BRTA.

The High Court recently directed the authorities concerned to form a task force across the country so that vehicles without fitness clearance and license cannot ply on the roads. It also ordered them not to provide fuel to any unfit vehicle.

Despite all these efforts, vehicles without fitness are plying freely throughout the country including Dhaka.

Mozammel Haque Chowdhury, secretary-general of Bangladesh Jatri Kalyan Samity, told The Independent that the problem a weak monitoring force was affecting good initiatives to make the roads safer. “We are now armed with a strong road safety act, but the problem is lacklustre monitoring,” he added.

He also said road accidents are increasing mainly because of reckless driving. “The government still can’t ensure that only skilled drivers are driving on the roads. If proper skilled drivers can be ensured, then road fatalities will be reduced by half,” he added.

When contacted, BRTA spokesperson, also Director (Road Safety) of BRTA Sk Md Mahbub-e-Rabbani said as the regulator, they don’t have any direct intervention in curbing road accidents in the country.

“But we are trying to make sure that the roads are free from greenhorn drivers. We also make sure that the vehicles without license and fitness certificate can’t ply the roads,” he said.

Rabbani also said they have been conducting road shows and awareness seminars in different districts across the country to raise awareness over accidents.

“We also maintain an accident research cell in our BRTA headquarter in where we compile data on accidents,” he added.

PMs directives on safe roads fall on deaf ears

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasinas directives for taking initiatives to make roads and highways in Bangladesh safer seems to have failed as the first two months of this year has seen no let off in the number of accidents and casualties. Government directives, higher court orders, and countrywide student protests have all gone in vain, as safe road still remains limited to empty words of those in authority, according to road safety campaigners. Amid the alleged inaction of the authorities concerned, pedestrians, commuters and passengers continue to be victims of road crashes and reckless driving in Dhaka and elsewhere in the country. In the wake of a massive student protest in 2018, the PMO had asked the authorities concerned to take measures against underage and unlicensed drivers in Dhakas public transportation system. During a Cabinet meeting on June 25, 2018, the Prime Minister had issued a set of directives to ensure safety on the roads and reinforce traffic discipline across the country, in order to reduce the number of accidents. Her directives included proper work hours for long-haul drivers, mandatory training for drivers and assistants in public transport services, service centres and resting rooms at regular intervals on highways, and strict monitoring to ensure everyone followed traffic rules. However, road safety campaigners claim that the authorities concerned have turned a deaf ear to the directives as unlicensed drivers with unfit vehicles continue to ply the roads, putting the lives of pedestrians and commuters at risk. According to statistics, the picture looks very grimy. The death toll in road accidents in 2019 exceeded the previous years by nearly 18 per cent. In 2020, the statistics have become worse. In January alone, at least 445 people were reportedly killed and 834 others injured in 340 road accidents across the country. In February, 534 people were killed and 1,169 injured in 504 incidents of road accidents, according to the road traffic monitoring cell of Bangladesh Jatri Kalyan Samity, a passenger welfare association. Among the victims, 99 were drivers, 187 pedestrians, 62 women, 71 students, 45 transport workers, 54 children, 13 leaders of various political parties, two freedom fighters, 11 teachers, and one engineer. The report also said that injuries from road accidents increased by 2.45 per cent compared to January, while road accidents were down by 5.35 per cent and death rate went down by 2.43 per cent. According to the report, reckless driving, overtaking, unfit vehicles, carelessness of passengers and pedestrians, unskilled drivers, and no enforcement of traffic rules are among the reasons behind the accidents. About the PMs directive, the authorities claim that directives regarding drivers rest every five hours of driving and alternative drivers for long-distance transports have already been implemented. However, senior transport leaders said it would take more time to implement the directives as there was a shortage of drivers. Meanwhile, directives regarding training facilities for drivers and their assistants, using seatbelts while travelling, and following traffic signals are yet to be implemented for lack of infrastructure. No major initiative except one inter-ministerial meeting has been held so far to fix the action plans for implementing the directives. When it comes to training, according to the BRTA, there are 120 registered driving training schools, 174 licensed instructors, and 17 driving training institutes under the Bangladesh Road Transport Corporation. But these are inadequate to train such a large number of drivers. Apart from luxurious and in-built buses, there are no seatbelts for drivers and passengers on buses. Seatbelts are also absent in trucks. Transport insiders alleged that though there are seatbelts for drivers in buses, the workers in most cases remove them for making the seat more comfortable. A senior leader of Bangladesh Road Transport Workers Federation said the proposed rest shelters would actually be suitable for goods-laden transport workers as they could take rest when they needed it. But in the case of bus drivers, he argued, if they were to get down at resting places, it would be difficult for them to return to the source point of the journey. However, there is no update on the BRTA website about the number of unfit vehicles plying on the streets. On July 24 last year, in a report submitted to the High Court, the authorities, however, asserted that 479,320 vehicles registered with BRTA did not have fitness certificates. Besides, even many vehicles with fitness certificates are actually not fit for plying on the roads. This is also partly because of the manpower crisis at BRTA. The High Court recently directed the authorities concerned to form a task force across the country so that vehicles without fitness clearance and license cannot ply on the roads. It also ordered them not to provide fuel to any unfit vehicle. Despite all these efforts, vehicles without fitness are plying freely throughout the country including Dhaka. Mozammel Haque Chowdhury, secretary-general of Bangladesh Jatri Kalyan Samity, told The Independent that the problem a weak monitoring force was affecting good initiatives to make the roads safer. We are now armed with a strong road safety act, but the problem is lacklustre monitoring, he added. He also said road accidents are increasing mainly because of reckless driving. The government still cant ensure that only skilled drivers are driving on the roads. If proper skilled drivers can be ensured, then road fatalities will be reduced by half, he added. When contacted, BRTA spokesperson, also Director (Road Safety) of BRTA Sk Md Mahbub-e-Rabbani said as the regulator, they dont have any direct intervention in curbing road accidents in the country. But we are trying to make sure that the roads are free from greenhorn drivers. We also make sure that the vehicles without license and fitness certificate cant ply the roads, he said. Rabbani also said they have been conducting road shows and awareness seminars in different districts across the country to raise awareness over accidents. We also maintain an accident research cell in our BRTA headquarter in where we compile data on accidents, he added.