Can BRTA overcome its fecklessness this time?
A great anarchy
is going on in the transport sector and the commuters are bearing the brunt of it
It is expected that after its declared period of 15 days, the BRTA would be able to present a solution regarding the so-called sitting service. The commuters in Dhaka city do not want to see that BRTA authorities, or communications ministry for that matter, could not withstand the pressure from influential quarters, however powerful they might be, in regulating fare of the bus services of the capital.
A great anarchy is going on here and if the state with its law and power to apply force fails to save the commuters who are paying double or treble the fare for going a distance under pressure, the very definition of our state as a welfare organization becomes questionable. Even a decade ago there was no sitting service in the capital. At each stoppage one would get a transport to commute inside the capital and pay according to the distance travelled. Gradually, all the town services turned into sitting service, gate-lock service or non-stop service travelling by which a commuter now has to pay the fare for a short distance for the entire route.
Of late, BRTA took a step to stop these services that, in the name of giving better service to commuters, has become a means for fleecing them by the transport authorities. Though transport owners agreed to the decision of cancelling these services and committed before the press that they would take fare according to BRTA fare chart, the ground reality was 40 per cent of the buses that usually ply through the different routes of the capital went off the citys roads creating an artificial shortage of transport. And the buses that plied during the time deliberately caused sufferings to the passengers by overloading, not switching on the fans and misbehaving with the commuters. The media, very naturally, highlighted the sufferings of the commuters.
The BRTA backtracked with one powerful minister rather sheepishly observing that in the transport business there were very influential people. When the minister talked in this surrendering tone, it became clear that the plan to stop sitting service would become a botched one and it was actually so.
The BRTA declared that for another 15 days this sitting service would continue and the organization would come with a new plan to control the town service, discussing the matters with the stakeholders. After about a week, this period will be over and it is expected that the BRTA would not bow down to pressure and grievances of commuters in all respect would be properly addressed.
