To bridge it, or not

It is really difficult to make people change their habits overnight, but it is certainly possible to raise awareness among them.
Most of the residents of the capital seem very much reluctant to use foot over-bridges. The reason behind this is yet to be ascertained.
Wherever you go, you will see people crossing roads like obstacle courses. Although there may be a fully functional footbridge close by, these pedestrians decide against using it and nonchalantly walk across the busiest thoroughfare, risking life and limb.
Dhaka city is thriving to become modern from every possible angle. It is transforming itself everyday and developing fast as the country’s centre of educational, cultural, commercial and political hub. In recent years, we have seen the mushrooming of mega shopping malls, expensive restaurants, fancy cafés, trendy boutiques, spa/ beauty parlours, apartment buildings and  five-star hotels _ all the stuff that make a city apparently colourful and affluent at first glance.
And being the capital and geographical centre, Dhaka is also the country’s main transportation hub. But the city suffers from a chaotic public transport system, which gets worsened by poor traffic control, causing extensive travel mayhem to the commoners.
The experience of travelling by public transport is terrible for most. Those who use public buses know the real pain of reaching their respective destination every single day. To go to my office, I always use public bus. I do not like CNG  auto-rickshaws as most of them are do not ready to go our destination on the meter, and often, they don’t want to go a short distance.
When I am on a bus, I see that most  people do not use a foot over-bridge and cross the road right in front of the running bus! It is a common scene in the capital every day, even on the busiest roads. The jaywalkers significantly contribute to traffic jams from Mirpur-10 to Shewrapara as drivers are forced to slow down _ to avoid running them over. Many mobile courts have been conducted in the area and magistrates have fined many instantly. But nothing has changed, and people continue with their old habits and cross the roads as if ‘who cares?’ Even road dividers with barbed-wire fences cannot stop them as they climb over.
When a school is over for the day, what do we see? We see guardians crossing the road carelessly with their children _ they just raise their hands to stop oncoming traffic. Although they can use the foot over-bridge easily, they don’t do it. Sometimes, drivers have to do hard brake, at the risk of an accident.
I have witnessed so many accidents during my everyday commute.  
There are five foot over-bridges from Mirpur-11 to Shewrapara. But city residents only use two. One is at Mirpur-10 roundabout and the other at Shewrapara. The bridge at Mirpur-11 in front of Bangla School always remains unused. Often, so many accidents occur. It is a common scene.
To stop this, it is more important to raise awareness of the people, rather than punishing them for their wrongdoing. But it will take years to improve the situation. If continuous campaign is conducted against jaywalkers, if the traffic police continue to hinder their movement and if mobile courts operate on regular basis, perhaps, then the situation will improve.
There are other things that need to be effectively addressed. There are still no foot over-bridges at many crucial points or intersections in the capital. Or the bridges are occupied by hawkers or beggars, like at Farm Gate or New Market areas. Moreover-bridges have to be constructed at strategic points and those that are occupied have to be made pedestrian-friendly.
If we don’t use the bridges, then hawkers will obviously reoccupy them. So, we have to make the habit of using them. If we can do it abroad, then why don’t we do it in our own country?
Moreover, when a accident takes place, who is to blame? Only vehicles? But why? Why don’t we people take responsibility, too? 

To bridge it, or not

It is really difficult to make people change their habits overnight, but it is certainly possible to raise awareness among them. Most of the residents of the capital seem very much reluctant to use foot over-bridges. The reason behind this is yet to be ascertained. Wherever you go, you will see people crossing roads like obstacle courses. Although there may be a fully functional footbridge close by, these pedestrians decide against using it and nonchalantly walk across the busiest thoroughfare, risking life and limb. Dhaka city is thriving to become modern from every possible angle. It is transforming itself everyday and developing fast as the countrys centre of educational, cultural, commercial and political hub. In recent years, we have seen the mushrooming of mega shopping malls, expensive restaurants, fancy cafs, trendy boutiques, spa/ beauty parlours, apartment buildings and five-star hotels _ all the stuff that make a city apparently colourful and affluent at first glance. And being the capital and geographical centre, Dhaka is also the countrys main transportation hub. But the city suffers from a chaotic public transport system, which gets worsened by poor traffic control, causing extensive travel mayhem to the commoners. The experience of travelling by public transport is terrible for most. Those who use public buses know the real pain of reaching their respective destination every single day. To go to my office, I always use public bus. I do not like CNG auto-rickshaws as most of them are do not ready to go our destination on the meter, and often, they dont want to go a short distance. When I am on a bus, I see that most people do not use a foot over-bridge and cross the road right in front of the running bus! It is a common scene in the capital every day, even on the busiest roads. The jaywalkers significantly contribute to traffic jams from Mirpur-10 to Shewrapara as drivers are forced to slow down _ to avoid running them over. Many mobile courts have been conducted in the area and magistrates have fined many instantly. But nothing has changed, and people continue with their old habits and cross the roads as if who cares? Even road dividers with barbed-wire fences cannot stop them as they climb over. When a school is over for the day, what do we see? We see guardians crossing the road carelessly with their children _ they just raise their hands to stop oncoming traffic. Although they can use the foot over-bridge easily, they dont do it. Sometimes, drivers have to do hard brake, at the risk of an accident. I have witnessed so many accidents during my everyday commute. There are five foot over-bridges from Mirpur-11 to Shewrapara. But city residents only use two. One is at Mirpur-10 roundabout and the other at Shewrapara. The bridge at Mirpur-11 in front of Bangla School always remains unused. Often, so many accidents occur. It is a common scene. To stop this, it is more important to raise awareness of the people, rather than punishing them for their wrongdoing. But it will take years to improve the situation. If continuous campaign is conducted against jaywalkers, if the traffic police continue to hinder their movement and if mobile courts operate on regular basis, perhaps, then the situation will improve. There are other things that need to be effectively addressed. There are still no foot over-bridges at many crucial points or intersections in the capital. Or the bridges are occupied by hawkers or beggars, like at Farm Gate or New Market areas. Moreover-bridges have to be constructed at strategic points and those that are occupied have to be made pedestrian-friendly. If we dont use the bridges, then hawkers will obviously reoccupy them. So, we have to make the habit of using them. If we can do it abroad, then why dont we do it in our own country? Moreover, when a accident takes place, who is to blame? Only vehicles? But why? Why dont we people take responsibility, too?