Accident or murder?

Can this be an accident? Or, a deliberately invited consequence of extreme callousness and unconcern about human life and safety? If the death of six people on Dhaka-Mawa Expressway on Friday had been a tragic outcome of some causal factors, it could be somehow accepted by acknowledging that such incidents, while unfortunate, are sometimes unavoidable. But in this case, a speeding passenger bus, instead of slowing down and stopping at the toll plaza of an expressway, rammed into vehicles standing at the toll booth and crushed the passengers on board. The bus initially rammed a car from behind, and the car then slammed into a motorcycle in front of it, leaving a child on the motorcycle killed on the spot. Of the eight others injured at the scene, four died on the way to a hospital and one died there later on. The CCTV footage of the tragedy, which snapped six lives in the blink of an eye, including four members of a family, making rounds on social media, has left the public in a state of shock and disbelief.

In yet another tragic incident on December 20, a BUET student was killed in a road accident in the 300 feet area of Purbachal Expressway. This incident too appears to be a case of vehicular homicide. It occurred when the victim, riding on a motorbike, was pulled over by a police officer apparently for having two pillion riders. He was talking with the officer along with his friends when a speeding car struck them from behind. Regular loss of lives under such unfortunate circumstances has become a part of the people's precarious existence in this country.

What is more concerning is the high frequency of accidents on expressways. While Bangladesh can justifiably take pride in transforming several highways into expressways, a lack of effective speed monitoring and enforcement of traffic rules has effectively turned these expressways into death traps for passengers. The maximum speed limit on expressways is 80 km/h; however, reckless drivers frequently exceed 100 km/h, creating a scary scene on the roads. As a result, fatal accidents have become a recurring occurrence. According to a report in this daily, at least seven people died and 30 sustained injuries in eight road accidents over the past six days on the Dhaka-Mawa Expressway alone.

As evidenced in both the Mawa and Purbachal Expressway tragedies, both drivers not only exhibited extreme recklessness and irresponsibility but were also intoxicated and showed a blatant disregard for human life. Furthermore, in the case of the bus driver, his driving licence had expired, and the bus itself had serious fitness issues. This underscores a dangerous combination of reckless driving, disregard for traffic regulations, and substance abuse among drivers. Vehicles operating in violation of such indispensable safety rules are bound to pose a lethal threat to the lives of commuters and pedestrians. The authorities concerned should take immediate steps to address these issues which have made roads even more dangerous. The allegations should be probed thoroughly and perpetrators must be meted with exemplary punishment. It is time for the government to act firmly as the country has already lost too many precious lives in what looked like avoidable accidents. The structural flaws in the roads, highways and expressways must be removed and traffic rules have to be enforced without fail. There is no point lamenting the deaths caused by chaotic and dangerous road traffic, if required measures are not taken to make the roads safer.