Megacity without taxicab!

Where have the taxicabs gone? Dhaka is perhaps the only megalopolis in the world, which lacks this essential service. Only for a brief period did this overcrowded capital boast fleets of yellow, black and blue cabs. But never did the service rise to an acceptable standard for a number of reasons, the chief among them being the authority's failure to strictly enforce the payment of rent on the basis of meter reading. Also, incidents, involving the killing of a number of taxi drivers and running away with their vehicles after they were duped by criminal gangs in the guise of passengers, did not help the cause.

Now is a phase when the worn-out taxicabs have been withdrawn from the city streets but no replacement made. The few ramshackle ones still operating on the city roads have been doing so illegally or they are on the verge of running out of their expiry period. There has been a policy change regarding the type of taxicabs to be allowed to run on the city roads. Earlier, the focus was on smaller types -usually 650 cc (cubic centimetre) cars fitted with taximeters -but now, to go by the communications minister's disclosure, the taxis to be introduced will be no less than 850 cc with some of them being air-conditioned. Unfortunately, the old fleet has all but disappeared without showing any sign that their replacements will appear on the city roads. Promises were taller but delivery not even shorter.

Sure enough, the country's political turmoil is one reason for the delay in arrival of the fresh batch of taxis but that is not the only reason by any means. The middle class in Dhaka city is passing through a critical period. Their average purchasing power has dropped on account of the emergence of a moneyed class, most members of which cannot claim they have accumulated their wealth honestly. Dhaka roads experience severe gridlocks mostly because of private cars and this explains the affluence of a new moneyed class. They feel not at all encouraged to take a taxi ride; instead they would go for private cars -if possible for more than one.

However, the middle class people cannot afford a car and their only way of fulfilling their desire for a car ride is to hire a taxi, particularly at times of family outings. But this occasional luxury too has been taken away from them by consigning the vehicles out of service without replacement. No wise management of the affair when the overwhelming majority in this capital is likely to be the middle class. Absence of a decent taxi service means some from this class also have to go beyond their means in order to be proud owners of cars. Consumerism is fanned with the assorted ill means of money-making. Had there been efficient and cheaper taxi service, better still bus or metro-rail service, people would not have gone crazy after procuring cars for private use like they do now. One thing thus leads to another. And this amply explains why government policies matter so much in the life of its citizens.