Tormenting traffic

Traffic congestion has made travelling a nightmare for daily commuters of Dhaka city. Hardly any discipline is observed on the road. Instead of stopping at a designated bus stop to pick up and drop off passengers, some buses stop anywhere according to their whim, causing inconvenience to others.

The problem is made worse by vehicles moving in haphazard directions in complete violation of traffic rules. Motor cyclists ride their bikes onto the pavement and put pedestrians' lives at risk. These incidents occur right under the nose of the traffic police. 

The media has addressed these issues many times. But it seems that the concerned parties, both commuters and the authorities, are either unwilling or unable to cooperate and help solve these problems. 

More traffic police must be employed in all important road junctions to control traffic movement. It is their duty to make sure that drivers strictly follow traffic signals and regulations. Those who violate traffic rules should be charged with stiff fines and imprisoned in case of serious offences.

A.K.M. Ehsanul Haque
Dhaka