The Ministry of Road Transport and Bridges (MoRTB) has rejected the plea for further extension of the economic lifespan of 2002-model CNG-run three-wheelers, officials said.
The ministry on Thursday turned down the proposal put forward for extending the lifetime of some 8,421 CNG-run three-wheelers in Dhaka and Chittagong cities in line with the recommendations made by BUET experts, they said.
"The MoRTB has taken decision not to extend the economic lifespan of three-wheelers older than 15 years following the recommendations made by BUET experts," BRTA Secretary Mohammad Shawkat Ali told the FE.
Earlier, Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) placed the proposal to the MoRTB following the demand made by auto-rickshaw owners and operators. The ministry at a meeting decided to seek expert opinions and allowed CNG-run auto-rickshaws to ply till March 31, 2018.
According to BRTA, the lifespan of a total of 8,421 CNG-run auto- rickshaws expired on December 31, 2017.
A team headed by Prof Dr Md Ehsan of BUET Mechanical Engineering Department conducted 'fitness test'. In their report, they recommended not to extend the existing lifespan of CNG-run three-wheelers anymore.
Earlier, the lifespan of 2002-model auto-rickshaws was extended thrice until December 2017 with a three-month
additional time as interim period which will expire on March 31, 2018.
However, auto-rickshaw owners expressed their dismay over the decision not to extend the lifespan of their vehicles further.
When contacted, Dhaka Metropolitan CNG-run Auto-rickshaw Owners Association president Barkatullah Bulu told the FE that the decision would put an adverse impacts on the public transport system in the two big cities.
"We will request the ministry to reconsider the decision as BRTA doesn't have the capacity to deal with the matters relating to replacement of such a large number of CNG-run three-wheelers by this month," he said.
Besides, he hinted at launching an agitation programme to protest against the decision.
On the other hand, auto-drivers have welcomed the decision.
Expressing satisfaction over the decision, General Secretary of Dhaka Auto-rickshaw Workers Union Mohammad Hanif Khokan said, "We have confidence in BUET and its testing report and recommendations".
Owners can replace their vehicles but a section of BRTA officials in connivance with some owners were active to extend the lifespan of CNG-run three-wheelers, he alleged.
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