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Bus owners and workers have taken to the streets at around 20 key points in Dhaka on Sunday to help ease traffic congestion and enforce discipline in public transport, particularly by preventing buses from stopping at unauthorised locations to pick up and drop off passengers.
Wearing orange vests and carrying batons, teams of transport owners and workers were seen directing buses at major intersections, including Shahbagh, Mirpur, Farmgate, Karwan Bazar, Paltan, Motijheel, Gulistan, Jatrabari and the ECB Chattar area.
A bus owner at Shahbagh said drivers and helpers had repeatedly ignored instructions not to stop randomly on the roads, prompting owners to take direct action.
“We have repeatedly told drivers not to stop buses wherever they want. That is why we, the owners, have taken to the streets to bring them under control,” he said.
According to the Dhaka Road Transport Owners Association, the campaign began on Sunday. Association leaders have also been visiting different points to monitor the activities.
On Sunday morning, Jahangir Sikder, convener of the Gulistan Bus Terminal Transport Owners Association and vice-president of the Dhaka Road Transport Owners Association, and Alomgir Kabir, member-secretary of the Gulistan terminal association, led drives against buses with broken windows, damaged paintwork and expired fitness certificates.
Meanwhile, SM Sohrab Hossain, convener of the Mirpur Regional Owners Association, visited Kalshi intersection as part of efforts to ease congestion and restore discipline.
The initiative follows a meeting chaired by the prime minister last Thursday on implementing the bus route rationalisation plan. The Dhaka Transport Coordination Authority (DTCA), Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) and bus owners’ associations have been assigned responsibilities for implementing the plan.
Road Transport, Railways and Shipping Minister Sheikh Robiul Alam said he met bus company owners and association leaders on September 28, when they reached a consensus on operating buses through companies and ensuring compliance with fitness requirements and transport laws.
According to bus owners, seven decisions were taken at the meeting. These include operating buses in Dhaka under company-based systems, holding companies accountable for violations, and taking legal action against buses that fail to comply with regulations.
The decisions also call for ending excessive booking charges and trip-based extortion at bus counters. If companies fail to improve services and drivers’ behaviour within a specified period, their route permits may be cancelled and alternative operators appointed.
Bus owners have been asked to complete repairs and repaint all buses operating in Dhaka within two months. Buses that are not repaired within the deadline will be kept off the roads.
The owners’ association and police will also form area-based teams to prevent the operation of unfit, dilapidated and unauthorised buses. All buses will be required to operate through designated counters and stop at designated bus stops for passenger boarding and alighting.
Transport owners and workers’ organisations have also been asked to hold discussions within 15 days on implementing company-based bus operations.
A S M Ahmed Khokon, secretary-general of the Bangladesh Road Transport Owners Association and treasurer of the Dhaka Road Transport Owners Association, told Bangla Tribune that owners had decided to take responsibility for regulating their own buses.
“We have long faced complaints that our buses do not stop at designated stops. We have repeatedly instructed drivers not to stop elsewhere and urged passengers to board and get off only at designated stops,” he said.
He said the campaign had begun at around 20 locations across the capital and would continue until discipline was restored.
