A motorcade of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina passes through Kuril Flyover in the capital after she opened it to the public for the first time yesterday.
Commuters of the capital’s Airport Road and Kuril intersection breathed a sigh of relief yesterday with the opening of the 3.1 kilometre Kuril Flyover, stating that traffic congestion there has become nearly non-existent, helping save time and fuel.
The 8.9 metre wide and 14.6 metre high flyover comprises four sections providing uninterrupted connection among Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport, Nikunja, Banani, Rampura and Purbachal areas.
Rampura and Purbachal areas can now be directly accessed by vehicles coming from the direction of the airport and Banani and vice versa. The flyover also provides direct connection to vehicles moving between Rampura and Purbachal areas.
According to a Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha (Rajuk) estimate of 2007, around 1,57,000 vehicles coming from the five aforementioned areas crosses the Kuril intersection every day.
A level crossing at the intersection closes 98 times every day. This used to halt traffic for a total of around eight hours and create around one-kilometre long tailbacks in the five directions, said a Rajuk official.
The flyover is helping in the uninterrupted movement of vehicles, saving valuable time and fuel of commuters, he said. By 2015, around 3,59,520 vehicles would be using the flyover every day, said the official, requesting anonymity.
One Mokhlesur Rahman, who has his office in Bashundhara Residential Area, said before opening of the flyover it took him at least 30 minutes to reach the residential area’s main entrance from the intersection on a vehicle.
“Today it took only 10 minutes,” he said.
Delowar Hossain, driver of a CNG-run auto-rickshaw, said sometimes it took nearly one hour to cross the intersection to reach Airport Road from Pragati Sarani.
The prime minister waves to the waiting crowd below the flyover during the inauguration.
But now it was taking only around 10 minutes as vehicles were moving uninterrupted, even when a train was passing through the intersection, he said.
However, some commuters expressed dissatisfaction at the lack of road signs and markers, leaving them in a quagmire once they entered the wrong direction.
This correspondent even found a traffic policeman directing traffic towards the wrong ways. Requesting anonymity, he said he did not know the proper directions and it would take time for him to get an idea of the directions.
Rajuk Chairman Md Nurul Huda said they failed to put up all the signs and markers due to a shortage of time. “We hope to put up the signs and markers within the next few days,” he said.
Source: The Daily Star
