Traffic Congestion in Dhaka City
Introduction : Dhaka is the Mega-City of the world with more than 10 million population. The popular density in the city is highest in the world. The sewerage system, transportation, housing, traffic management etc. in the city are problematic. Thus, the city dwellers are facing a log of problems in their everyday life. Among many other problems, traffic congestion is acute one which results in waste of time and money. The reasons responsible for traffic congestion include absence of mass bus transit system, abundance of slow moving rickshaws and auto-rickshaws, lack of sufficient road space, inefficient traffic management and lack of required traffic rules and even improper implementation of traffic rules.
Causes of Traffic Congestion : Traffic congestion in the Dhaka City is the result of a lot of factors. Such as-
1. Absence of mass bus transit system : Mass bus transit system is the most efficient mode of transportation in major cities of the world.
2. Abundance of Rickshaws : The city presently has been swept by 5 lakh rickshaws growing at the rate of 20% each year. Rickshaws carry 48% of the total passenger trips occupying 73% of the road space.
3. Lack of sufficient road space : A large city should have road space at least 20% of the total city space. But in Dhaka city road space is estimated to be only 3% of the total city space.
4. Problems with the traffic laws and management : The traffic laws available in our country are not enough for efficient traffic management. More particularly, the punishment for violation of traffic laws is not effective.
5. Insufficient car parking place : Many skyscrapers are built without planning. So, various markets are built centring such building, people come to buy necessary things in such market but they are not given any place for parking. So, the general public keeps their vehicle here and there. So, traffic jam becomes inevitable for such rubbish planning.
Suggested measures : For getting rid of traffic congestion problem, both the government and private sector should come forward with innovative programs and initiatives.
1. Model shift of vehicles : Road space occupied by per passenger of buses is much less than that of others. So, to optimize the use of the costly road space of such a congested city the low capacity rickshaws and auto-rickshaws are to be replaced with high capacity buses.
2. Improving the traffic management system : Prompt initiatives should be taken for improving the traffic management system of the city. In this direction, installation of sophisticated traffic signals and traffic directing instruments can improve the system slightly.
3. Reformation of traffic laws : The existing traffic laws of the country should be reformed. Provision should be made to ensure the punishment for violation of traffic rules and regulations.
4. Phase-out the rickshaws : The rickshaws and auto-rickshaws should be phased out of the arterial roads of Dhaka city. However, the auto-rickshaws and rickshaws would ply in all the roads other than about 500 kilometres arterial roads of Dhaka.
Conclusion : After above discussion, it is clear that problem of traffic congestion in Dhaka City could not be solved totally overnight. Rather it needs long term initiatives. However, the initiatives taken so far are praiseworthy which include construction of fly-overs at different points of the city, formation of different transport companies under which a large number of luxurious buses, taxi and CNG auto-rickshaws are playing in the city.