Highways are buckling under sudden rush of vehicles as people are heading out of Dhaka to spend Eid and Puja holidays back in their village and town homes.
Long queues of stranded vehicles in gridlocks could be seen in many places on the highways on Thursday.
bdnews24.com Gazipur correspondent reported that traffic build-up was noticed since morning until night on a 15-to-20 km stretch on the highway from Gazipur’s Kaliakoir to Konabarhi.
Officials have attributed the gridlock to highway-repairing work in Mouchak area, vehicles moving onto the highways from branch roads and plying of a large number of trucks hauling cattle.
Gazipur Traffic Assistant Police Superintendent (ASP) Mohammad Sakhawat Hossain told bdnews24.com that a severe traffic snarl developed from Konabarhi to Chandra on Dhaka-Tangail Highway.
Homebound travellers suffered to no end as traffic congestion continued from morning until 8pm, he said.
“It took more than three hours to cover a distance of five kilometres. Though the congestion eased in the afternoon, it again started aggravating after evening. The gridlock spread over 20 kilometres area to Chandana-Chourasta, Bhogra bypass, Konabarhi to Chandra in Kaliakoir.”
He said as potholes had formed in a stretch of highway from Konabarhi to Chandra, vehicles were allowed to ply only one-way to facilitate the ongoing repairs.
Apart from that, large number of vehicles moving onto the highways from the branch roads, sudden increase in vehicular traffic on the highways due to Eid holidays and slow movement of cattle-loaded trucks were contributing to the congestion.
Meanwhile, Maona Highway Police Station’s OC Mohammad Sanowar Hossain said since evening traffic suddenly increased on Dhaka-Mymensingh Highway.
“As four-lane expansion work is in progress at Gazipur section, vehicles are passing through the area slowly, more so as there are potholes on the road.”
“Police are having tough time to control this traffic jam,” he added.
Additional pressure on Dhaka-Chittagong Highway
Vehicles are crawling at several stretches a on Dhaka-Chittagong Highway in in Comilla. However, police are claiming they are controlling the situation.
bdnews24.com Comilla correspondent reported that as the day started with heavy traffic, movements of vehicles were slow at various points.
The situation has been further aggravated by the drivers’ tendency to overtake, highway police say.
Mainamati Highway Police Station SI Mohmmad Enamul Haque said, “There’s traffic pressure at various places in a 70 kilometre stretch on the highway from Comilla’s Alekharchar to Daudkandi.”
“However, we are trying our best to ensure that this pressure does not turn into gridlock. We are clearing the road by rushing in additional personnel to the spot as soon as we get any report of traffic jam from any place.”
Highway East ASP Shoilen Chakma said, “Until now there is no gridlock as such but the pressure of traffic is very high in some places on the highway.”
Source: Bd news24
