Mayor wants traffic system under DCC

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Dhaka City Corporation (DCC) Mayor Sadeque Hossain Khoka has said the city's traffic system needs to be brought under the corporation to ease the worsening traffic condition. "We've urged the government to put the capital's traffic system under the DCC for better traffic management, but there has been no response," Khoka told UNB over phone. He said the city cooperation alone cannot deal with all the problems as it is understaffed. "Police and Rajuk (Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha) have their own roles." Khoka said the city corporation has no force of its own. "We've to depend on the police for many things, including maintaining discipline. If we have our own force, we can handle things in our own way." The mayor's idea comes at a time when commuters' stress and anger level are soaring fast in capital Dhaka. Once a small and beautiful city of only 3.5 million people in the 50s, Dhaka has emerged as one of the world's worst city with some 15 million people. Traffic congestion, water logging, solid waste disposal, power outage, short supply of water, air and noise pollution, and vanishing playgrounds and parks have made the city as the 'world's third least livable city'. "Multiple solutions need to be deployed simultaneously to put this city back on track," said M Fazlur Rahman, a former secretary. He said: "Traffic jam is a real headache for every commuter of this city. It takes toll on people's health, productivity and social life." Fazlur Rahman said new techniques are required that will empower transportation officials to better understand and proactively manage the flow of traffic. He said that illegal parking has made things even worse. "Metering along wider roads and congestion charge for passing through busy areas can help ease the traffic congestion." Asked whether the corporation has any plan to introduce metering, the city mayor said: "We've got narrow roads... this (metering) would not be possible right now." Engineer Ali Ashraf, a city planner, said the deteriorating traffic is a constant reminder that "our infrastructure is breaking down." Ashraf, also the President of Bangladesh Institute of Planners, Chittagong chapter, said the city authorities need to be harsh in forcing the motorists and commuters to abide by traffic rules. He said: "There should be a nonstop campaign to bring about a change in our callous attitude." Fazlur Rahman said: "We need to use every technique we know - like building mass transit, getting more people into fewer vehicles, encouraging flexible hours and working from home -- to get rid of the situation." About footpath encroachment by hawkers, mayor Khoka said: "We've written letters to the police about it on various occasions, but nothing happened." He also blamed the Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha (Rajuk) for being reluctant to do anything about encroachment of walkways by various markets, shopping complexes and apartment buildings. "We're trying our best, but we need to understand that development is an ongoing process. Someday we'll be able to get rid of the mess," the city mayor hopes.