Ensuring safe journeys on highways during Eid
The highway police seem to be proactive this time to cope with the forthcoming Eid journeys. They prepared a list of 71 spots of the countrys highways that are physically in bad shape and sent the list to the road transport and highway division, according to a newspaper report on Friday. Of these spots, the highway police mentioned 33 spots that need immediate repairs. Now it would not be an overstatement to say that each year the relevant authorities demonstrated glaring failure in managing traffic on the highways during Eid. The authorities made some cosmetic repair of the highways more as a display of showmanship before some days of Eid than engaging in all out efforts to make the journeys of the home-bound travellers truly smooth and safe.
Well before the start of the Ramzan month this year, the Minister of Road Transport and Bridges, Obaidul Quader, several times observed that during upcoming Eid, there would be no traffic jams on the highways. Accordingly, in a meeting it was decided that heavy vehicles would be off from the highways for about a week before and after Eid so that pressure of vehicles on the highways can become less. If this assurance is translated into reality people may be somewhat relieved of the
traffic jams.
But the problems on the highways have been aggravated as the whole country is witnessing heavy downpour for about a week that has turned the conditions of sections of highways needing repairs still worse. New potholes have appeared and in places roads have crumbled. As it is the rainy season, it is very likely that rainfall would continue to make worse the conditions of these sections of highways that now need urgent repairs. That is why it is very important to take up a crash programme to repair the highways immediately. Here the short list of 33 spots sent by the highway police has to be given highest priority because it was drawn up through their firsthand experience of the highways.
True, managing traffic during Eid time in all respects is a gigantic affair. From keeping the roads free from jams to providing security to travelling people from muggers, the traffic policemen have to look into so many things to make the Eid journeys safe and smooth. But the basic requirement is to keep the roads fit enough for travel by vehicles. Thus, to this very basic need all efforts must be singularly concentrated. There are not many days between now and the observance of Eid and the repair works on the highways must be thoroughly completed well ahead of the event.
