kru finaltransportation sector of bangladesh

8/13/2019 KRU Finaltransportation sector of Bangladesh

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S. NAME RO

1 Nipun Gho!h 11"

Ma$$nu% A%a& A'i(u$ 1

) Tri!hna Saha 1*+

* Ta-$$( a!an 1/)

0 Moha&&ad Na!i& Uddin 1/

/ Fariha a!!an 12+

GROUP # 11



2

"ovem!er #$, #%1&,

Mr' Md' (a)i *aihan Uddin,

Lecturer,

Department of Management,

Faculty of Business Studies,

University of Dhaka

Su!+ect: pplication for transmission of the report'

Dear Sir,

- have the honor to state that, .e .ere assigned to prepare a report on /Management Failure in

0ransportation Sector of Bangladesh' Under your kind supervision .e prepared the report' 2e

investigated for it, gathered information and analy)ed it'

-, therefore, hope that you accept the report'

0hankfully 3ours,

0a.fee4 5asan,

6n Behalf of 7roup 8 11,

Batch 1th

Section: B,

Department of Management,

University of Dhaka'

$''$r o- Tran!&i!!ion



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Mr' Md' (a)i *aihan Uddin, Lecturer, Department of Management, University of Dhaka has

given us, a !ody of students from BB 1 th Batch, Department of Management, University of

Dhaka, authori)ation to prepare this report on 3Mana4$&$n' Fai%ur$ in Tran!por'a'ionS$5'or o- Ban4%ad$!h6.

0he report intends to serve the follo.ing purposes:

9resenting the real situation of the transportation sector of Bangladesh,

Understanding the necessity of good management in the field of transportation,

Discovering ma+or handicaps that are impeding the development of this sector,

Finding possi!le solutions for the pro!lems,

Discovering a !etter management plan for an integrated and modern transportation

system'

2hile preparing the report .e encountered a num!er of difficulties and to a small etent it

caused some limitations' Lack of cooperation from the related organi)ations, inade4uate time,

lack of previous eperience etc' .ere some limitations'

M$'hodo%o47 o- 'h$ S'ud7

Data .ere collected in t.o .ays' 0hese are

;i<;i< 9rimary Data

;ii<;ii< Secondary Data

4uestionnaire .as used to collect some data .hich has !een added in the appendi section'

A58no%$d4$&$n'

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;n'rodu5'ion

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0ransport developments have !een driven in Bangladesh mostly !y improvised considerations

having no eplicit focus on future re4uirements and the means of meeting these re4uirements

on a competitive as .ell as sustaina!le !asis' 0he unplanned com!ination of rapid ur!ani)ation

and motori)ation has !een a key cause of numerous transport pro!lems in Bangladesh' -t has

resulted in deterioration in accessi!ility, service levels, safety, comfort, operational deficiencies'

0he rapid ur!ani)ation process, high vehicular population gro.th and that of the mo!ility,

inade4uate transportation facilities and policies, varied traffic mi .ith over concentration of

non=motori)ed vehicles, a!sence of dependa!le transport system and inade4uate traffic

management practices and parking facilities have created a significant .orsening of traffic and

environmental pro!lems particularly in ur!an areas' 0raffic accidents are no. a very serious

and gro.ing pro!lem and the safety situation is very severe !y international standard' 0he

pro!lem of road accidents cost the community in the order of US> ?%% million ;nearly #@ of

7D9< each year'

0he other serious deficiencies resulting from ad=hoc planning are sectorial !ias, improper modal

mi, un=integrated system, serious institutional .eakness, limited role of the private sector etc'

0he current deficiencies have produced an unsustaina!le trend of transport development, .hich

is characteri)ed !y misallocation of resources, adverse impacts on the environment and lack of

competition' 0he current distur!ing trends in transport development indicate the need for

guidelines to make such development environmentally and to create a transport system that can

meet the gro.ing demand for transport services'

;n'rodu5'ion



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0ransport is an important component of economic activity in all countries !ut especially so in

those that are developing' 0he potential for enhancing economic and social development

through improvements in the transport sector are very large indeed' -t helps the generation of

economies of scale, increased competition, reduced cost, systematic ur!ani)ation, eport=led

faster gro.th and a larger share of international trade' But, it is true that, the unguided nature of

present development efforts is rooted in the a!sence of a vision for future development' vision

sets the direction for development and guide formulation of policy measures and strategies to

attain identified o!+ectives' Unfortunately, no such vision for transport development eists in

Bangladesh' 0he current distur!ing trends in transport development indicate the need for policy

directions to make such development environmentally and other.ise sustaina!le and to create

a transport system that can meet the gro.ing demand for transport services .hich is resulting

from increasing economic li!eration and eternal orientation of the economy'

Starting from the first government formed !y Bangladesh .ami League in 1A1, all the

governments of this territory took many steps to solve the Ctransportation pro!lem of

Bangladesh and all have failed' 0he present government also has taken up some measures

.ith apparent signs of failure' 0he government has also declared Clucrative and safe policies

like: ;i< underground rail.ay, ;ii< mono=rail, ;iii< flyovers, ;iv< elevated epress.ays etc' ny

person .ith little intelligence might understand that these measures also .ould !e proved

failure in the long run' -n connection .ith these am!itious, !ig !udget and long term policies .e

have used t.o terms, Clucrative and Csafe' 0hese policies are Clucrative !ecause there

remains Cplay of !ig money from .hich all the associated persons can make money' 0hese

policies are also Csafe, !ecause there eists almost no accounta!ility in such pro+ects' Such

epensive pro+ects need longer time, like ten or more years, to !e materiali)ed' fter the pro+ect

is finished it may !e seen that those .ho advocated it as Cecellent solution have safely

disappeared from the scene' 0he high ranking political personals may have taken shelter in

foreign countries, !ureaucrats might have gone on retirement and politicians, changed parties'nd even if any related person is asked C.hy the pro+ect did not give the predicted result the

possi!le and safe reply .ould !e, C.ell, other unforeseen developments nullified the solution'

-t is generally agreed that a .ell=articulated transport policy is needed for the development of

transport sector, even .hen the private sector plays an increasing role in such development'



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0he level of transport needs in a gro.ing economy depend on the pattern of development ;e'g'

spatial com!ination of economic activities, sectoral composition, and importance of international

trade<' 0ransport policy can influence the .ay the transport needs associated .ith a particular

pattern met' policy is re4uired to ans.er such vital 4uestion, among others, as .ho .ill

provide transport infrastructure, .ho .ill provide transport services, ho. transport infrastructure

and services should !e priced, .hat the appropriate roles of various transport modes in a

transport system are, and ho. to resolve potential conflicts !et.een transport developments

and the environment'

Si4ni-i5an5$ o- Tran!por' S7!'$& D$<$%op&$n'

"o politics move smoothly unless economy moves smoothlyE and no economy moves smoothly

unless transport moves smoothly' 5ence .ithout strong economy politics may simply turn

to !e 96L30*-GS' 0ransportation system is the !ack!one of a country' 2e can talk a!out

industriali)ation, genetically modified crops , ne. scientific discoveries and their contri!utions to

a countrys development !ut at the end of the day, sound transportation system .ill !e needed

for all of this' From economic to political vie., significance of a sound transportationmanagement system is inevita!le for a countrys development'

O<$r<i$ o- Ban4%ad$!h Tran!por' S7!'$&



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0he transport system of Bangladesh consists of *oads, *ail.ays, 2ater.ays, Seaports,

irports, Maritime shipping, B*0, ir.ays, Givil viation uthority and 9ipeline' 9resently

there are a!out #1%%% km of paved roads, #% route km of rail.ays ;Broadgage=??H km and

meter gage=1?## km<, $#%% km of perennial .ater.ays, .hich increases to ?&# km during

monsoon'

Development and maintenance of transport infrastructure in the county is essentially the

responsi!ilities of the pu!lic sector' 0he pu!lic sector is involved in transport operations in road,

inland .ater transport ;-20< and ocean shipping alongside the private sector' -n the road

transport and -20 su!=sectors, the private sector is dominant' -n ocean shipping, ho.ever,

pu!lic sector still predominates, although the private sector has considera!ly increased its role

in this sector in recent years' *ecently private sector has also !een involved in domestic air

transport and rail.ay in a very limited scale'

Bangladesh .itnessed rapid gro.th of transport since independence' 0he overall annual gro.th

rate has !een nearly ?'# per cent for freight transport and ?'H per cent for passenger transport'

Iven then, the transport intensity of the Bangladesh economy is considera!ly lo.er than that of

many developing countries'

n amount of 0k' 1%A,A$$'$% million has !een earmarked from pu!lic sector for the

development of transport in the Fifth Five 3ear 9lan' Besides this, a sum of 0k' 11,?%% million

has !een provided for the Banga!andhu Bridge giving a total allocation of 0k' 1#1,$$'$%

million for the transport sector as a .hole' 0he percentage share of transport in the total pu!lic

sector outlay is 1H'#% compared .ith 1'$% in the Fourth Five 3ear 9lan and a!out 1A during

1AA$=A'

Road Tran!por'

0he total paved road length under *oads and 5igh.ays Department ;*5D< has epanded from

a mere %% km in 1AH to around H,#$ km in 1A& and to around #1,%%% km in #%%1' t

present it is nearly ##,%%% km'



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nother 1,?&,&$H km of road eisted under L7ID, as of Decem!er 1AA?, .hich link rural

gro.th centers .ith the arterial routes' Most of the heavy vehicles in Bangladesh are of #=ale

configuration, .ith t.o .heeled front ale and H=.heeled rear ale' 0he ale load limit is 1?,%%%

l!s or ?'# tonnes, compared to 1%'# tonnes in -ndia'

Ban4%ad$!h Rai%a7 >BR?

Bangladesh *ail.ay ;B*< has a total route kilometer of #&H, of .hich A%1 km is Broad 7auge

;B7< and 1?&& km is Meter 7auge ;M7<' 0he B* is at present catering to passenger and freight

services at H?A stations spread over the entire country'

9rivate sector is !eing increasingly involved in rail.ay operations over the last fe. years' 0hese

initiatives included the leasing out of commercial functions for passenger trains' B* signed

private sector contracts for the development, operation and maintenance of their ticketing

reservation and for the maintenance, epansion and provision of telecommunication services to

!oth rail.ay and general pu!lic utili)ing the rail.ays fi!re optic net.ork' -n general, this private

sector involvement has !een highly successful resulting in increased revenue for the rail.ay

and !etter levels of service for the pu!lic'



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Bangladesh *ail.ay has also introduced computeri)ed .agon control system ;*-L2-GS< in

1AAA=#%%%' U"ISG9 assisted programme can no. !e used for tracking and monitoring

movement and status of all rolling stock, containers and cargo' System can !e integrated for

international tracking' 0he system is no. fully operated !y B*'

0he most important issues at present .ith regard to Bangladesh *ail.ays are the high level of

direct and indirect su!sidies provided !y the 7overnment' Bangladesh *ail.ays revenue

currently covers less than % percent of its operating costs' 0he situation has !een .orsening

.ith Bangladesh *ail.ays share of traffic declining and its costs increasing, and it is un=clear

.hat can !e done to reverse the trend'

*etaining lucrative inter=city trains under government management, Bangladesh *ail.ay

is handing over loss= incurring epress trains to private firms for commercial operation'

Bangladesh *ail.ay has enhanced the capacity of Dhakas -nland Gontainer Depot ;-GD< to

A%%%% IUs ;0.enty I4uivalent Units< per year from #$%%% IUs at a cost of 0k'$?% million'

;n%and @a'$ra7!

Bangladesh is a Maritime country .ith vast net.ork of inland .ater.ays' 6ut of nearly #H,%%%

km of rivers, streams and canals in Bangladesh, only a!out $,A% km is naviga!le !y

mechani)ed vessels during monsoon period, .hich shrinks to a!out &,A% km during dry period'

pproimately, A%@ of -20 services are provided !y private sector'



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0he -20 sector carries over $%@ of all arterial freight traffic and one 4uarter of all passenger

traffic' *iver insta!ility coupled .ith rapid deterioration of the river system through massive

siltation causes serious pro!lems to navigation and also to the management, operation and

development of -20 system' 9assenger and cargo facilities are inade4uate in terms of landing

stages, storage area and handling e4uipment' 0he management capa!ilities and skills are 4uite

lo. and it re4uires human resource development ;5*D< and training' *ural landing facilities

;pontoon and +etties< are fe. and far !et.een compared to the needs for mass transportation'

-nland 2ater transport is one of the oldest modes for economically efficient and

environmentally sustaina!le transport system of the country' -nland .ater.ays are a critical

component of the Bangladesh transport system in vie. of the floods, .hich regularly affect the

country and disrupt the other t.o surface transport modes' 0he inland .ater.ay net.ork

comprises over ?&%% km of naviga!le .ater.ays during the monsoon season, a reduction to

a!out $#%% km occurs during the dry season' More than half of the countrys total land area is

situated .ithin a distance of 1% km of naviga!le .ater.ays' 0his net.ork of .ater.ays carries

a!out a third of the total freight to km, and approimately 1&@ of all passengers use -nland

2ater 0ransport' ma+or pro!lem affecting inland .ater transport is the shrinking of the

naviga!le net.ork due to !oth siltation and reduction in the amount of .ater availa!le during

the dry season'

0he inland .ater.ays include some 11 ma+or and over 1%% minor ports and a!out %%%%% river

vessels are operating in the country' Most of these ports are impaired !y inade4uate facilities

for mooring and unloading vessels and for storage of goods as .ell as !y siltation of approach

channels' 0hese pro!lems are compounded !y the changing morphology and unpredicta!ility

of the rivers, .hich often change course, erode em!ankments and generally endanger

fied riverfront infrastructure' Su!stantial increases in !udgetary allocations for dredging and

in the productivity of the dredging fleet are needed

0he country .here rivers carry #%%%=#$%% million tons of silt a year in that country there has not

!een added even a single ne. dredger in last #H years time' 0here are altogether &$ dredgers,

of .hich # are under Bangladesh 2ater Development Board and the rest ? are under

Bangladesh -nland 2ater 0ransport uthority' Surprisingly t.o dredgers .ere !uilt in 1A$% and



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.ere used in digging the Sue) Ganal' 0he total 4uantity of silt dredged in 1AA$=A !y -20 .as

1%H' million cft, .hile B2DB dredged $'#%=million cft of silt during the same period' -n 1AA=

A -20 dredged 1# million cft of silt and B2DB dredged ??'% million cft of silt'

Ou'%and @a'$ra7!

-n order of importance, Bangladeshs three ma+or ports are Ghittagong, Mongla and the

Dhaka="arayangan+ comple' Ghittagong handles a!out @ of the countrys 1% million tons of

annual foreign trade' Mongla port is yet to fulfill its o!ligation due to pro!lem of siltation at the

approaches to the !erths and hinterland access' 0hough the port .as designed for a '$ metres

deep approach channel, yet due to siltation the re4uisite draft is not availa!le ecept during the

high tide only' 0he Dhaka ="arayangan+ port comple is handling an increasing volume of

traffic, gro.ing from 1' million tons in 1A?% to a!out ?'%% million tons no. of .hich around H$@

are sea=!orne' 0he potential for container traffic at this port is presently some #%%%%% tons and

could gro. to over $%%%%% tons !y the year #%%%, if ade4uate container facilities are provided'

0here are potentials for gro.th in container traffic and possi!le esta!lishment of an

international port of call at Dhaka'

Bangladesh Flag Merchant fleet has 1H Jessels of Bangladesh Shipping Gorporation and 11 at

the private sector currently' 0he total D20 capacity of the Bangladesh flag vessels

;pu!licKprivate< is only % '&&? million M0 no.' Bangladesh flag vessels currently transport less

than $@ of our general cargo movement of our foreign trade, although U"G0D code of



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conduct for liner shipping conferences provides for up to H%@ of the country s liner trade to !e

carried !y "ational Flag Jessels'

recent U"G0D study, ho.ever, sho.s that the developing countries .ithout their o.n

merchant fleet usually pay ?=1%@ higher freight rates than the countries .ith their o.n fleet'

Shipping should !e treated as an eport=oriented industry and given all kinds of support for

development'

Gontainer traffic at Ghittagong port is gro.ing at the rate of &H@ per annum and is epected to

reach a level of #?H%% 0IUs !y #%%%' 0he container terminal at the port al.ays remains

congested !ecause of poor dispersal of traffic to Dhaka area, .hich accounts for %@ of

the total traffic' Gontri!utory factors for the stagnation areE inade4uate handling e4uipment

at the multipurpose container terminal at Ghittagong, shortage of container .agons and

locomotives to reach containers to Dhaka terminal and inade4uate infrastructure for providing

door to door service to customers'

Air Tran!por'

-n addition to Biman the Bangladesh irlines, .hich is entirely in the pu!lic sector, a

num!er of private airlines have !een esta!lished during last fe. years in Bangladesh' ll

airports of the country are, ho.ever, in the pu!lic sector, only a minor element of the

ground facility is in the private sector' 0o meet gro.ing demand government has plan to

construct ne. air ports in important places, apart from reintroducing Gomilla, Lalmonirhat,

0hakurgaon, 0e+gaon, Shamshernagar and -sh.ardi airports after necessary repair'

Like many other pu!lic enterprises Bangladesh Biman has !een incurring loss year for yearsE

in fiscal year1AA?=1AAA its loss reached 0k' &&'A million' 0he 4uality of services of Biman isnot of international standard, !esides its services cost more than that of the international

airlines' 0hese are the main causes for the loss of Biman !ecause it cannot compete .ith

international airlines and market it services' Being 1%%@ o.ned !y government, Biman has

certain disadvantagesE it is not fully customer focused and 4uick in decision=making' Biman,

ho.ever, is seeking assistance from international consultants to hand over H%@ of its stake to



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another airlines'

-n total 1? foreign airlines and H Bangladeshi airlines operate in Bangladesh' mong the

foreign airlines only l=-talia has !een rendering freighter services' 6f Bangladeshi airlines

Bismillah airlines operates freighter services !et.een Dhaka and Bangkok .hile 7M7 and ir

9ara!at operate in domestic routes'

0here are $% scheduled arrivals and $%=departures everyday in Dhaka airport' Last year #'$%

million passengers, ?&%%% tons of cargo and A$% tons of mail .as carried' 0his has

accounted for '$%@ rise in international passengers and 1@ in cargo over the previous

year' 0he route net.ork of the national flag carrier spreads over #$ destinations in #1

countries in Iurope, sia and merica' -n 1AA? Biman carried 1'#& million passengers

&%%% domestic and ?%% international' -n 1AA?=AA it carried #A$%% tons of cargo and &%%

tons of mailE cargo and mails are mostly international' 6f these a!out $% tons of cargo and

mail .ere carried on the domestic routes' Bimans revenue mostly comes from international

operations' Gompared to Biman foreign airlines carried 1'1#? million passengers, $&%%% tons

of cargo, and H$ tons of mail' Domestic airlines carried 1?%%% passengers' 2ithin

Bangladesh Biman operates on seven destinations and the operation is maintained !y

operating $% international flights and % domestic flights per .eek'

Ur9an Tran!por' S7!'$&

0he ur!an transport issues of mo!ility, congestion, safety and environmental aspects are

!ecoming increasing important and critical in Bangladesh' 0he rapid ur!ani)ation process, high

vehicular population gro.th and that of the mo!ility, inade4uate transport facilities and policies,



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varied traffic mi .ith over concentration of non=motori)ed vehicles, a!sence of dependa!le

pu!lic transport system and inade4uate traffic management practices and parking facilities have

created a significant .orsening of traffic and environmental pro!lems in the ma+or ur!an

centers, Dhaka in particular'

0he ur!an transport system focuses on mo!ility and access .ithin the main cities and to.ns'

0he main strategic issue related to ur!an transport is the efficiency of intra=ur!an transport in

the main ur!an centers' *apid ur!an gro.th and its contri!ution to the national economy need

to !e carefully addressed' 0ransports role in the ur!an economy and gro.th of this sector has

!een phenomenal ;e'g' individual mo!ility and ne. employment opportunities in the transport

service sector<' 0his role need to !e strengthened and 4ualitatively improved in the coming

years, .hile the management of the ur!an system has !ecome a critical issue' Management

issues are epected to constrain the gro.th of the sector, vis=a=vis, the national economy,

unless clearly defined policy and strategic actions are initiated .ithout further delay'

lthough Dhaka is one of the least motori)ed city of the .orld, !ut the most polluted one' Due to

the emission of !lack smoke from the three .heelers yearly damage due to health in+ury is

estimated at 0k'%% millions' 2orld Bank estimate sho.s that 0( 1%% million is lost per year

due to traffic +am' s for eample only rail gates are closed for H# times a day for movement of

trains' Dhaka Metropolitan Development 9lan proposed ? commuter rail.ay lines and seven

su!=.ay lines !y #%1$' -deally road should !e constructed on #$@ of citys surface, !ut

tragically only ?@ is in Dhaka Gitys surface'

mong the !ig cities in Bangladesh, Dhaka has !een gro.ing very fastE its annual average

gro.th rate since li!eration is a!out A'&#@' -t is easily assuma!le that the demand of transport

and hence the pollution of the city has !een increasing .ith the gro.th of the Gity'

Mu%'i&oda% Tran!por'

0he use of containers as a means of door=to=door international trade .as firmly esta!lished in

the %s and Multi= modal 0ransport System .as a logical development' 0hus the concept of

integrated transport system came in to !eing' lthough Multi=modal 0ransport has !een firmly



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esta!lished at international level during the last t.o decades, Bangladesh is lagging !ehind'

0his is mainly due to very slo. progress in the esta!lishment of Gontainer 0erminals in our

ports'

a58in4! in :urr$n' Tran!por' D$<$%op&$n'

0he transport development in Bangladesh has taken place .ithin the contet of a lo. level of

overall national development and essentially .ith an in.ard looking policy'

Until no., the development and maintenance of transport infrastructure has remained the

responsi!ility of the pu!lic sector' -n addition, pu!lic sector is the main provider of rail and air

services and is also involved in providing services in road, inland .ater transport and shipping

along .ith the private sector' n overvie. of the main features of the eisting transport situation

in Bangladesh, deficiencies, trends on transport development is presented in this section'

Poor =ua%i'7 o- Tran!por' S$r<i5$!

0he transport sector in Bangladesh is characteri)ed !y .eak pu!lic and private institutions, and

lo. level of investment' -t operates in a physical environment of high levels of risk, and socio=

political contet of etreme poverty and fre4uent man=made disruptions' 0he general 4uality of

services at all levels and !y all modes has !een poor' 0he overcro.ded !uses, trains and .ater

transports, .ith poor safety and security records, and unrelia!le service operations are 4uite

common in Bangladesh' -n freight transport, ecessive cost, time, pilferage, etc', are some of

the common pro!lems' 0hese pro!lems are further complicated !y vested interests from !oth

.ithin and outside the transport sector itself and the socio=political environment of the country'

*oad accidents, air pollution due to vehicle emissions, ha)ardous vehicle drivingKoperations,

overloading, etc are some of the most common phenomena, in transport sector, particularly in

the ur!an areas' 0hese phenomena have actually developed due to lack of enforcement of

eisting rules and regulations .ith regard to transport operation in the country' 2hile

overloading of !uses, rash driving of trucks, un.orthy vehicles are supposed to !e stopped !y

la. enforcing agencies vi), traffic police, very little effective measures are actually taken in this

regard'



2

;nappropria'$ Moda% Mi

Due to its comparative advantages in terms of speed, flei!ility, and accessi!ility, road transport

has emerged as the most popular mode of transportation in Bangladesh' *eflecting popular

demand for road transport and increased reali)ation of the significance of road transport for

rural development and poverty alleviation, road development has continued to receive ma+or

attention of all successive governments since li!eration in 1A1' s a result, road transportation

has !ecome the principal mode of transportation for !oth goods and passenger traffic'

2ith ma+or developments in the road sector, the relative roles of the three modes of surface

transport = road, inland .ater transport ;-20< and rail.ays are changing .ith road transport

gro.ing progressively' 0he share of road sector has gradually increased from less than &% per

cent during the First Five 3ear 9lan period ;1A&=?< to more than percent during the Fourth

Five 3ear 9lan ;1AA%=A$<' -ts share in the current Fifth Five 3ear 9lan ;1AA=#%%#< is a!out %

per cent' 2ater transportation suffered the most follo.ed !y air and rail transport' During the

same period, the share of .ater transport decreased from a!out #H per cent in 1A&=? to a

mere 1# per cent during the current plan period'

0he implications of these changes in resource allocation are clearly reflected in the evolving

relative roles of these modes' 0he road transport has epanded at the epense of rail.ays and

inland .ater transport' ll these distortions have taken place due to distorted pricing of the

services .hich are neither !ased on economic costing nor !ased on cost=recovery principle'

Unaar$ o- 'h$ R$4iona% Ro%$ o- 'h$ Tran!por' S7!'$&

s indicated earlier, Bangladesh has !een developing its national transport system, essentially .ith an in.ard looking strategy' -n the contet of the glo!ali)ation process .hich is currently

under.ay, it has !een o!served that .orld .ide economic dynamism has !een driven to a

significant etent !y economic echange on an increasing scale among economies situated in

the same regionKsu!=region' Despite her strategic location in the su!=region comprising the

countriesKareas .hich are the close neigh!ours, such as "epal, Bhutan and "orth=Iast -ndia,



2

Bangladesh has not !een planning and developing its transport system .ith a regional

perspective in mind'

D$<$%op&$n' Tr$nd No' Su!'aina9%$

0here is a gro.ing interest in sustaina!le development, .hich re4uires us to !e more sensitive

to environmental and social constraints, including indirect and long=term impacts' -t emphasises

intergenerational e4uity and long=term ecological via!ility' Sustaina!ility has significant

implications for transportation planning, since transport activities tend to !e highly resource

intensive, have numerous eternal costs, and fre4uently distri!ute impacts ine4uita!ly'

Sustaina!le development focuses on improved access to facilities and to using each mode for

.hat it does !est' -mprovement of access and distri!ution of linked production and storage

activities can su!stantially reduce the necessity of movement andKor reduce trip length resulting

in lo.er demand for transport infrastructure and services, less energy consumption and

reduction of eternal costs'

9ricing policy for the transport sector of the country poses a serious pro!lem for the proper

functioning of the transport sector' lthough pricing policy should ideally !e !ased on cost

recovery principle, in reality it is not commensurate .ith the cost of providing transport services'

Fare and rates in all the transport su!=sectors are fied at a level much !elo. the com!ined

cost of transport' 0his leads to su!stantial losses in all the transport su!=sectors and in turn puts

strains on the total allocations meant for the different sectors of the economy' lthough the

transport is a service sector and the pu!lic transport is provided depending on the principle of

pu!lic service o!ligation ;9S6<, the practice of providing unlimited su!sidy from 7ovt'

eche4uer is creating pro!lem for other sectors of the economy too, and is therefore not

sustaina!le'

Tran!por' S7!'$& No' Fu%%7 ;n'$4ra'$d

-ntegrated system development .hich has no. !ecome a ma+or issue in modern sustaina!le

transport development, has particular significance for Bangladesh .ith her acute resource

scarcity' 0hus there is an urgent need for an optimum mi of modes and minimisation of



2

consumption of resources' 5o.ever, such a mi cannot !e achieved if one looks at a mode in

isolation from others' 0hus although rail and .ater transport is generally more efficient than

road transport !ecause of their higher energy efficiency and !etter la!our productivity, this fact

!y itself cannot ensure greater use of these modes' -n most of the cases they alone cannot

provide door=to=door services' Because of their higher terminal costs they are also not suita!le

for short trip length or .here intensity of demand is too lo. to +ustify higher capacity modes'

0hese inherent characteristics of different modes re4uire that to improve overall efficiency each

mode should !e used for .hat it does !est in an overall transport chain' *eflecting a

fundamental change in the traditional .ay of looking at transportation of goods and people, a

mode is increasingly considered only as a link in the chain and the .hole issue of transportation

from the origin to ultimate destination is considered' -n Bangladesh, each mode of transport

operators on its o.n .ithout any initiative to esta!lish efficient logistic chains !et.een 6=D

involving different modes as necessary' 0hus an integrated system involving different modes,

as appropriate from the origin to ultimate destination is needed'

Poor Air =ua%i'7 Du$ 'o i4h$r C$hi5u%ar E&i!!ion!

round 1%%% M0 of pollutants are pumped into the environment every day in Dhaka, of .hich

%@ comes from vehicles, follo.ed !y industrial units, gar!age and other !iomass !urning !y

the slum d.ellers and !urning of coal and .ood !y the large num!er of !rick fields in and

around the city'

lthough the total num!er of vehicles in Dhaka city are not large relative to human population,there is preponderance of para=transit' 0he city, ho.ever, suffers from high level of am!ient air

pollution due to vehicular emissions, and is one of the .orst environmental pro!lems affecting

more than ten million inha!itants of Dhaka city' Motor vehicles contri!ute a!out $$@ of S6,

%@ of "6 and %@ of G6 of the total' 0he motori)ed vehicle population in Dhaka is

dominated !y three .heelers and these vehicles are mostly po.ered !y t.o stroke engines



2

.hich have high 5G emissions as .ell' -n addition these vehicles emit un!urned gasoline as a

li4uid particulate that com!ines .ith .ater vapor to form an aerosol that provides a !lue ha)e on

the roads' -t is fully esta!lished no. that t.o=stroke engines are a ma+or contri!utor to am!ient

5ydro Gar!on ;5G< and suspended particulate matter ;S9M<, 5G and 9M car!on monoide

;G6< concentrations' 0here are a!out %,%%% t.o=stroke three .heelers ;per year increase

&$%%<, #%%% t.o stroke large tempos ;per year increase #%%< and &%%% four stroke three

.heelers ;per year increase &%%< in Dhaka city'

Pri<a'$ S$5'or6! Ro%$ No' Fu%%7 D$-in$d

0he conventional .isdom that government o.nership and direct operation of services are

re4uired to deliver social !enefits of transport is no longer held sacred' Ividence in many

countries has sho.n that private sector o.nership and operation of transport services can also

deliver social !enefits to the people as a .hole' -n order to secure competitive access to

industrialised economies and glo!al trade generally, and also to eploit the potentials of

providing transport services to the su!=region, Bangladesh needs an active participation of

private sector to !ring in efficiencies of service operation and access to capital'

5o.ever, currently the involvement of the private sector is limited mainly to providing services in

some of the su!=sectors like road, inland .ater and shipping' 0hey have also very limited

participation in civil aviation and rail services' 0he involvement of private sector in infrastructure

development is also lo.' 0here are many reasons for lo. private sector involvement' !sence

of regulatory institutions, an appropriate legal frame.ork and inade4uacy of capa!le and

educated transport providers, !ureaucratic procedures and practices, etc', are some of the

factors .hich are .orking as the o!stacle to private sector involvement'

a58 o- Ur9an Tran!por' Po%i57

Bangladesh has no ur!an transport policy as yet' s such there is no clear decision as to .hich

modes of transport and facilities, the ur!an areas should encourage' -n the past ur!an transport

received little attention, as investment .ent more in infrastructure development for inter=ur!an

linkages and for opening up links to rural gro.th centres' 0he Hth Five 3ear 9lan of Bangladesh



2

;1AA%=A$< indicated that ur!an transport pro!lems, .ill !e tackled, particularly in the

metropolitan areas .ith emphasis on land=use and .ater management system'

7overnment therefore, undertook a study Cthe 7reater Dhaka Metropolitan rea -ntegrated

0ransport Study ;D-0S< ;1AA#=AH<, funded !y U"D9' -n line .ith the findings of the study, 2orld

Bank formulated a pro+ect CDhaka Ur!an 0ransport 9ro+ect, to address in the short=term,

urgent policy issues, infrastructure !ottlenecks and traffic management constraints, and in the

longer term, to focus on planning, institutional and policy action' Based on another

recommendation of the 2orld Bank for strengthening coordination mechanism, 7reater Dhaka

0ransport 9lanning and Goordination Board ;7D09GB< .as esta!lished' 0he Board has

recently !een renamed as Dhaka 0ransport Goordination Board' 2hile efforts are under.ay to

improve ur!an transport situation in Dhaka, similar initiatives need to !e taken to address ur!an

transport pro!lems in other cities, and !efore that there is an urgent need for setting ur!an

transport policies of Bangladesh'

7enerally speaking such a policy should aim at developing an integrated, !alanced and

environmentally sound ur!an transport system in .hich all modes ;motori)ed and

nonmotori)ed< can play their roles efficiently'

;n!'i'u'iona% D$-i5i$n57

0he Bangladeshi institutions .hich are linked to transport sector, in general, have .eak and

outdated structure' 0heir lack of capacity and shortage of resources seriously undermine their

capa!ility for good governance, sound policymaking and pu!lic management' 9o.erful vested

interests and legal constraints further compound the pro!lem' 0he manifestations of all these

are reflected in the poor= and malgovernance of the transport sector, the outcomes of .hich are

loss=making state enterprises, lack of investments in transport infrastructure, !reedingcorruption, deterioration in the institutions of la. and order, .eak la. enforcement impacting on

safety, security, environment, private sector participation, etc'

Different ministries and government agencies responsi!le for transport sector development are

currently follo.ing a sectoral approach .ith no or very little coordination among themselves'



2

0he !asic pro!lem here is the lack of coordination among various government agencies and the

a!sence of a clear policy frame.ork .ith regard to transport sector of the country' -nter=modal

priority that is essential for efficient resource use and for avoiding duplications and minimi)ing

.astage of resources is hardly found in practice' -nstead, some non=economic factors such as

political considerations get prominence in many instances in connection .ith intermodal as .ell

as intra=modal transport allocation in the country' -n the past, the 9lanning Gommission used to

play a ma+or coordinating role in the allocation of resources for development !ased on detailed

analysis of economic costs and eternalities' 0his has diminished over the years'

a58 o- Ci!ion

-t is vital for any country to have a vision for transport development' 2ithout a vision,

development efforts !ecome ad=hoc, and remain unguided' vision sets the direction for

development and guides the formulation of policy measures and strategies to attain certain

o!+ectives' Unfortunately, no such vision for transport development eists in Bangladesh'

Gonse4uently, our development efforts have resulted in situations such as sectoral im!alance

leading to inefficient utilisation of scarce resources, adverse environmental impacts,

development of a system having little focus on any regional role, etc' vision is therefore,

needed for a long=term !alanced and integrated system development, .hich can address the

present deficiencies and at the same time meets the future re4uirements' vision is needed

.hich is realistic and is !ased on recogni)ing current development, potentials of gro.th, and

glo!al trend' 0his should also take into account the changing needs of the people, their

aspirations, .ell!eing and afforda!ility, system efficiency, effective utilisation of the eisting

facility, technological development, and minimisation of resource ;physical and financial<

consumption .hich is of vital importance' 6ur actions in transport development cannot deliver

the social !enefits .e are looking for .ithout having such a vision and accompanying !road

strategies'

En<iron&$n'a% :on!'rain'!

Invironmentalists have started complaining that the Iarth going !ust as Iconomy

Booms' 7lo!al economic trends during the A%s .ere remarka!ly !ullish !ut the environmental



2

trends .ere disastrous, 2orld 2atch -nstitute said in its report 0he 2orld #%%%' Iconomic

euphoria may lead us to ignore trends that have the potential to reverse progress' s the Do.

Nones goes up the Iarths health goes do.n'

0here is no universal rule that environmental 4uality has to deteriorate in order to make

economic progress' 0here are countries such as Gosta *ica that have achieved

remarka!le economic success .ithout damaging their environment sho.s that the goals of

economic gro.th and environmental protection can !e complementary rather than

contradictory'

-t is often contended that a poor and economically !ack.ard country like Bangladesh need not

!other a!out the 4uality of its environment and instead make an all out effort to achieve

economic development' 0hose .ho support this vie. refer to the o!servation of the eminent

.estern economist Simon (u)nets .ho held the vie. that at a lo. level of per capita national

income, environmental 4uality at first deteriorates .ith gro.th and then it improves .hen the

economy reaches higher levels of income' 0his results in an inverted U=shaped relationship

!et.een the level of pollution and the level of per capita national income'

"o!el Laureate and economist (enneth rro. and a num!er of other scientists have

challenged the theory of (u)nets and argued that the developing countries could protect the

4uality of the environment of their countries through conscious efforts' 0here are countries such

as "igeria .hose environment has suffered terri!ly !ecause they have supported economic

gro.th .ithout taking any notice of the disastrous adverse effect of the development policy on

the environment'

-n Bangladesh around 1%%% M0 of pollutants are pumped in to the environment every day in

Dhaka, of .hich %@ comes from vehicles' t the same time nearly &%@ fuel is !eing .astedin Bangladesh !ecause old o!solete technology is in operation, inefficient and su!=standard

appliances are !eing used and handling, operations and maintenance are very poor'

S$5'ora% Bia!



2

Bangladesh !eing a flat country of limited spatial spread leading to a short trip length, road

transport has an apparent technical and cost advantage over the other t.o surface

modes' 6n the other hand particularly the rail.ays is in a technically disadvantaged

position in Bangladesh mainly !ecause of its outdated and dis+ointed net.ork that .as

developed a!out 1%% years !efore to serve a different spatial pattern of movement of goods and

people'

0his road !ias has !een further strengthened !ecause of eisting market distortions in

pricing of services !y different modes, .hich favors road transportation' -nland .ater transport

has suffered o.ing to siltation of the rivers, reduction of length of the naviga!le .ater.ays, lack

of dredging, investment for moderni)ation and for various other reasons' 0his modal

su!stitution of .ater and rail transport !y road transport is very much 4uestiona!le on

economic as .ell as on environmental grounds'

Su9!$5'or :on!'rain'!

0he development of surface transport system in Bangladesh is constrained !y follo.ing five

ma+or sets of factors:

1. Ph7!i5a% :on!'rain'!

Difficult 0errain

9eriodic flooding

9oor soil condition

Irosion of rivers and siltation

. D$<$%op&$n'a% :on!'rain'!

Lo. level investments

9oor maintenance

). ;n!'i'u'iona%5u&Po%i57 D$-i5i$n57



2

lack of co=ordination and autonomy of transport parastatals

*. Ra&pan' and &a!! 5orrup'ion

0. ;nad$(ua'$ $n-or5$&$n' o- a, Ord$r!, Ru%$! and R$4u%a'ion!



2

Dha8a

For long ;#%%A 1A1< &? years, the authorities of Dhaka city have endeavored to solve

the transportation pro!lem and have spent millions' -n such a situation it is logical tofirst have a look into the reasons !ehind their failure' 0he three ma+or reasons !ehind

their failure may !e mentioned as:

1? (itchen=level solution

? Gorrupt !ureaucrats and political leaders

)? Lack of prudency of the ur!an planners

2e shall present hereunder their !rief descriptions'

Ki'5h$n$<$% So%u'ion

-f the kitchen=maid is given the responsi!ility of solving the pro!lems inside the kitchen,

she .ould !e a!le to do the same to the maimum etent possi!le for her' Since the

activities and supplies of the kitchen are intricately related .ith other rooms of the

house, for effective solution the interference of the house=o.ner is a must' Similar is the

case .ith the /transportation pro!lem of Dhaka city' 5ere the pro!lem is related .ith the

entire country !ecause people from the entire country contri!ute to /transportation

pro!lem .ith their visits and carrying of vehicles' 0he ur!an authorities do not have any



2

instrument to control their flo. or migration, .here as the changes in their num!er are

key factors in generation of the pro!lem' Because of this reality .e opined that the role

of the Dhaka ur!an authorities is similar to that of the Ckitchen=maid, .ho does not have

control over some of the ma+or influencing factors staying outside her domain'

:orrup' Bur$au5ra'! and Po%i'i5a% $ad$r!

0he single strongest reason for .hich Bangladesh as a democratic country could not

have epected level of development is, there is no transparent and .ell=spelt system of

collection of money for !earing the cost of the political parties' -n democracy the

activities of the political parties is essential and the need of money for the same is

o!vious' But there is a!solutely no system or provision for collecting the same' -n such

a situation the politicians collect money from all possi!le sources' 0he ruling

government manages the same from the t.o ma+or sources :

1? Bi4 pro$5'! 5undreds of millions of 0aka have !een spent for solving Dhaka

citys transportation pro!lems and all have failed' 0he ironic truth is, even though

some eperts correctly predicted their fates, those .ere taken up mostly for the

cause of enriching the corrupt !ureaucrats and fuelling the ruling political parties'

? Boo'i$! -ro& 'h$ %a 9r$a8in4 p$r!on! Most of the time the peoples elected

leaders collect !ooty from persons en+oying illegal or unla.ful opportunities' For

eample, the footpaths are meant for peoples .alking and not for trading' 0he

local political leaders and monitoring personnel allo. the ha.kers to continue the

same at the cost of kick=!acks'

-t .ill not !e possi!le for any political party of this democratic country to take up pro+ects

entirely for satisfying the peoples needs unless and until a transparent system of fund

collection for the contesting political parties can !e ensured'

a58 o- Prud$n57 o- 'h$ Ur9an P%ann$r!



2

0he first proof of lack of prudency of the ur!an authorities is, they cannot even reali)e

that they are playing the Crole of the kitchen maid in the pro+ect .here /house masters

interference is a must' -t is evident that the local ur!an authorities do not have control

over some of the internal and all of the eternal factors affecting the citys transportation

domain' Dhaka citys transportation pro!lem is intricately related .ith the follo.ing

internal and eternal factors :

1? ;NTERNA

;i< 7overnments policy regarding accommodation of inha!itants ;e'g' density

of population per unit area, taking into consideration the allo.a!le heights

of !uildings< and commitment to strict adherence to the declared policies

;ii< 9olicy of car occupancy

;iii< 9olicy regarding type of citys physical epansion ;i'e' .hether it .ould

take place as agglomeration, fringe area a!sorption, satellite gro.th or

independent development etc'<

? ETERNA 9olicy regarding entry of people and vehicle from outside the

planned area'

-n Bangladesh some peculiar things can !e noticed in the attitude of the ur!an

authorities' -t may seem strange that various programs taken up !y the ur!an

authorities shamelessly go for ensuring the financial interest of the land o.ners' Iven

though Bangladesh is a democratic country .ith e4ual rights for all, their activities

reveal as if they are .orking for :

>i? Making the city a ha!ita!le area for only the affluent people,

>ii? I4uipping and enriching the city .ith facilities, provisions and services such that

people from all over the country and a!road could !e compelled or allured to come here

and spend money'

-n the history of Bangladesh all the governments, .ith the lone eception of 9resident

5'M' Irshad, have sho.n utter ignorance of the interest of the people living outside



2

Dhaka' 9resident Irshads CUpa)illa 9arishad program .as a ecellent gesture of

helping the citi)ens distri!uted all over the country'

Some of the means in .hich the ur!an authorities ignored the needs of the common

people and endeavored to favor the rich are :

Iven though the first condition of efficient movement of people in any city is

Cfootpath, the Dhaka city authorities have kept !lind eyes on its improvement

and maintenance' 6n many occasions, they have allo.ed the rich people to use

it as car parking, eclusive .aiting space, storage space, garden, !usiness

outlet, office for the political parties etc'

0he ur!an authorities discovered that ricksha.s .ere the Chindrance for the

movement of the rich mens cars' So they started eliminating those from the so

called J-9 roads' "o., ho.ever, they reali)e that the cars themselves are their

.orst enemies and act as o!struction for their movement even in .ide roads'

-t is interesting to note that at present the poor people feel amused to see that .hen

they can someho. manage their movement in the ill=maintained footpaths and lanes !y

foot or ricksha.s, the rich people, +ammed in their o.n +ungle of cars !urn and .aste

fuel and suffer from severe pains' 0his situation ho.ever, has created golden

opportunity for the car=traders to sell air=conditioned cars'

Ma!! Tran!i'



2

Ouite often it is said that an efficient system of mass transit can solve Dhakas

transportation pro!lem' 0his solution in the Clevel of the kitchen=maids may !e .orka!le

only if the higher authorities ;i'e' masters of the house< can ensure the follo.ing:

>i? Gontrol over the num!er of vehicles allo.a!le inside the city,

>ii? Gontrol over the entry of vehicles from outside,

>iii< "um!er of inha!itants, etc'

-n case the ur!an authorities continue its present program of increasing the city !y

a!sor!ing the fringe areas, increase of allo.a!le heights, construction on vacant lands

etc', then mass=transit in large=!odied vehicles .ould not at all help !ecause in that

case Cthe roads .ould eventually !e +ammed !y large !odied vehicles'

0he use of private vehicles in large num!er has not !een a!le to solve transportation

pro!lems in any part of the .orld' Multiple level vehicular roads create tremendous

environmental and sound pollution' 2ider roads allo.ing speedy vehicles increase

possi!ility of accidents' ccidents taking place in .ide or multiple level roads result is

severe damage and loss of life' 6ne may imagine ho. difficult it is to send help to such

nearly inaccessi!le places' 0he car=manufacturers and sellers are super=active to hide

these facts' 6n the other hand they introduce passive solutions like, introducing cars

.ith movie, internet, coffee=making facilities, provisions for eercise, !ook reading etc',

saying these save the time of the o.ner' -n the developed countries they usually !ri!e

the politicians to adopt pro+ects utili)ing cars' 0heir influences have entered the arena of

education also' 0he curriculum of 9hysical planning courses in those countries has

!een prepared ensuring maimum use of private cars' 0he universities of Bangladesh

also have prepared their curriculum for those courses after their curriculums' -n such a

situation it is no .onder that the physical planners having degrees from home or a!road

do not learn to think differently'



2

-n course of his long eperience in the developed countries, Dr' Fa)lur *ahman (han

reali)ed the a!ove mentioned pro!lem' 6n one occasion he opined, C0he .orkers

housing should !e esta!lished nearest to the industries such that they can come on foot

spending minimum time' 0he o.ners of industries love to construct those at far a.ay

places .here land is cheap' 0hey use !uses to transport them' Such a system takes

a.ay considera!le leisure time of the .orkers, involve unnecessary use of vehicles and

create permanent loss of gas ;gasoline or fuel< from the limited .orld reserve of fuel' -t

.as natural that his intelligent advice .as not given importance !y the capitalistic

countries' But the irony is, .hat a Bangladeshi engineer could think .hile living in a

.estern country, our planners fail to reali)e the same even after living in this poor

country'

1? Po%%u'ion

5istorically, Bangladeshs transportation policy has !een focused on epensive

road=!uilding programmes, such policy adopting a modernist Ctransport

economics perspective of epanding private car dependency' 5o.ever,

although per capita levels of motorisation are lo. ;less than five vehicles per

1%%% persons<, the levels of pollution = and the etent of congestion ;as further

set out !elo.< = are etreme' 5igh levels of air!orne pollution pose serious risks

to human health, and the high levels of congestion

contri!ute to the loss of .orking=hours and an associated loss in the national

7D9'

0hese high pollution levels are attri!uta!le to a num!er of different causes for

eample, presence of lead in the automotive fuel, the poor state of maintenanceof many vehicles ;especially !uses and trucks<, traffic congestion, etreme

population density and a humid climate, causes that apply to all Bangladeshi

cities' 5o.ever, 4uantifying the average levels of air pollution in Dhaka, for

eample, has proven to !e difficult due to the variation of particulate suspension

that occurs .ith changes in am!ient humidity' 7eneral estimates for residential



2

areas place the average suspended particulate matter ;S9M< level at roughly

dou!le the Bangladeshi standard of #%% gKm' -n commercial areas, it is estimated

that the average S9M levels eceed the Bangladesh standard !y a factor of ,

and the 256 guidelines of 1#% gKm& !y a factor of 1%'

lthough the general levels of pollution in Dhaka from vehicular emissions are

ecessive, it is the associated high lead content in the air that that poses the

greatest risk to human health' 0he Bangladesh tomic Inergy Gommission has

estimated that, each year, $% tons of lead are emitted in Dhaka' 0his has led to

air content lead levels which are among the highest in the world ' Further,

a!normally high levels of lead in the !lood of those .ho are most vulnera!le to

this kind of pollution = children and those undertaking strenuous activity have

!een recorded' For eample, a 1AA1 study of ricksha. pullers recorded an

average !lood lead level of $& micrograms per decilitre and a study of street

children revealed !lood lead levels of A%=#%% micrograms per decilitre' Such lead

levels are .ell in ecess of the 256 recommended safe !lood lead level of #$

micrograms per decilitre'

0he ecessive lead content in the air in Dhaka is attri!uted !y agencies such as

the sian

Development Bank and the 2orld Bank to the almost eclusive use of leaded

fuel .ithin

Bangladesh' 2hile these agencies argue for the need to s.itch to unleaded fuel,

this .ill re4uire a massive financial investment as Bangladeshs only oil refinery

cannot process unleaded fuel' 5o.ever, according to proponents of sustaina!le

transport, it is not primarily the use of leaded fuel !ut private car o.nership, the

resulting congestion and fossil fuel dependency that is the primary cause of

pollution in Bangladesh'

? :on4$!'ion and 'ra--i5 a55id$n'!



2

*icksha.s, given their prevalence on the streets of Dhaka, are commonly

!lamed for the traffic chaos there' 0he Dhaka Gity Gouncil has previously moved

to ease traffic

congestion !y restricting the free movement of ricksha.s .ithin the city' 0his has

included strategies .hich vary from the !anning or eviction of ricksha.s in

certain chowks and ma+or roads to proposals for the elimination of ricksha.s'H

2hile strategies aimed at totally eliminating ricksha.s have thus far proved to !e

unsuccessful, policing strategies aimed at restricting ricksha. access remain'

-mplementation of these strategies has !een only partially successful' lack of

general a.areness of traffic rules, insufficient num!ers of police, a high incidence

of police corruption and associated lack of faith in the policing system all

contri!ute to the ineffectiveness of policing strategies' -n addition, police have

failed to prevent the encroachment of pedestrian traffic, construction materials

and parked vehicles onto dedicated road space, such failure eacer!ating road

congestion'

-t could !e argued that a lack of road space is the ma+or cause of congestion in

Dhaka' 2ithin Dhaka road area densities are approimately ? to 1%@ of the total

city areaE $ such densities are .ell !elo. the recommended planning densities of

around #$@ of the total city area' 5o.ever, the argument that traffic congestion



2

is directly linked to road service area provision can !e 4uestioned on the !asis

that ;a< planning for an increase in road area densities does not address other

Cuser issues such as the commingling of vehicles .ith different travel speedsE

and ;!< increasing road area densities does nothing to diminish the likelihood of

pedestrian and !uilding material encroachment onto dedicated road space'

ttri!uting the traffic congestion in Dhaka to inade4uate road area densities

infers that congestion issues could !e addressed !y increasing the num!er and

.idth of roads in the city' 0his .ould re4uire the su!stantial and costly demolition

of eisting houses and infrastructure, particularly .ithin the 6ld Gity, and it is

invaria!ly the poor .ho .ould !e most affected !y such developments as lo.

cost housing, slums and lo.er socio=economic areas are usually targeted as the

preferred sites for road net.ork epansion in sian cities'

programme to increase road area densities .ould re4uire massive financial

investment and structural read+ustments' 2hile it may reduce some traffic

congestion in the short term, many transport issues, particularly those pertaining

to the ur!an poor, .ould remain unaddressed' -n addition, facilitating greater

levels of motorised transport .ould lead to even higher levels of air pollution'

Finally, .hile statistics on traffic accidents in Bangladesh are inade4uate, it is

clear that the country has one of the highest rates of traffic accidents in the .orld,

and road deaths are increasing' -t is almost t.ice as !ad as its neigh!ors -ndia

and 9akistan, and H% times as !ad as most developed countries'

0raffic accidents have often !een !lamed on the presence of ricksha.s, and

such accidents are one of the +ustifications for ricksha. restrictions and evictions'

5o.ever, as 7allaghers o.n research sho.s, Cricksha.s .ere not the main

source of accidents' *ather, he found that in almost A%@ of road accidents

causing death, a !us, truck or mini!us .as involved' 7allagher concluded that

Cricksha.s are not the most risky mode of transportation in Dhaka and that risks



2

that do pertain to ricksha.s are related to the motori)ed traffic .ith .hich they

share the roads'

9edestrians are the main casualties of traffic accidents involving ricksha.s, the

rate of pedestrian deaths eacer!ated !y inade4uate pedestrian facilities'

9edestrian crossings are disregarded and many roads have no crossings and

are, as a result, at times impossi!le to cross'

)? Non&o'oriz$d -or&! o- 'ran!por'

"on=motori)ed, non=polluting forms of transport such as .alking, cycling and

travelling in ricksha.s are etremely important in South sian cities such as

Dhaka' -n Dhaka, the vast ma+ority of daily inner=city +ourneys are made using

"M0' -t has !een estimated that A@ of the total num!er of trips undertaken in

Dhaka utili)e such forms of transportation, and they are essentially rene.a!le

for eample, .alking and cycling' 5ook and *eplogle state that non=motorised

trips .ithin Bangladeshs other cities Caccount for as much as A@ of total trips'

7iven the lo. road service area in Dhaka ;!oth per capita and per unit area<, the

spatial

efficiency of different modes of transportation is an etremely important

consideration' -n our vie. the lo. spatial efficiency of private cars renders their

increasing usage untena!le in Dhaka city' 0his is !est eemplified in the 6ld

Gity, .here the dense ma)e of streets results in vehicular one=.ay travel' Barter

notes that the high levels of congestion in many sian cities even at the current,

relatively lo. levels of per capita motorisation is indicative of their structural

ina!ility to sustain high rates of private car usage'

"evertheless, transport policy in Bangladesh has !een characterised !y the

promotion of higher levels of motorisation, greater private car o.nership and

discouragement of "M0' 0he government of Bangladesh has, for eample, taed



2

imported !icycles and most !icycle components at 1$%@ ;and at 1%@ for

imported !icycle tyres<, .ith taation on small engine automo!iles at $%@, !uses,

+eeps and station .agons at &%@ and mini=!uses and trucks at #%@' 2hile

heavy taation of !icycle components .as +ustified on the !asis that it protected

domestic !icycle producers, this +ustification seems to !e self=defeating .hen

over t.o=thirds of !icycle components .ere imported, .ith attendant higher costs

for !icycle and cycle ricksha. operation and o.nership' -mport duties thus

favoured motorised transport' -n addition, cars have !een and are vie.ed as

sym!ols of prestige and success'

5ook and *eplogle have argued that policies adopted across much of sia

;including

Bangladesh< regarding street=space allocation and use, transportation su!sidies

and transport system investments promote Crapid motori)ation and the

destruction of economically and environmentally sustaina!le lo.=cost non=

motori)ed transportation modes' 0hey conclude that sian cities:

C.ill need to do more to protect and enhance opportunities for non=motori)ed and

pu!lic transportation or risk losing the competitive advantage offered !y efficient,

lo.=cost transportation modes and the spatial patterns of development they

support and sustain'

Ri58!ha!

0he !ias against "M0 has !een most visi!le in the implementation of road policing

strategies in

Dhaka ;such strategies referred to earlier<, specifically the !anning of ricksha.s on

ma+or roads

and chowks, such !ans first implemented in a significant .ay in 1A? and then again

after the election of the B"9=led four=party alliance in #%%#' -n pril #%%H under its

"ational Land 0ransport 9olicy, the government decided to remove ricksha.s from

eight ma+or roads of Dhaka for a total length of 1#% kilometres !y Nuly #%%, and

su!se4uently evicted thousands of ricksha. pullers'



2

Such !ans have had little impact on reducing the levels of traffic congestion' recent

study of ricksha. Cevictions carried out in Dhaka in Septem!er and 6cto!er #%%$

concluded that the evictions failed to prevent traffic +ams and congestion indeed, post=

evictions, Cmore cars keep

plying the city roads, creating more congestion than !efore ;New Age #%%<' -n addition

to the

economic impact on the affected ricksha. pullers and those directly and indirectly

reliant on them, transport costs for commuters on the affected routes increased !y 1% to

1$@, .ith mo!ility reduced !y some $%@'

-n a further attempt to restrict the num!ers of ricksha.s on the road, the Dhaka Gity

Gouncil has in the past re4uired that all ricksha.s !e licensed, and has limited the

num!er of registrations, .ith resulting Cviolent competition !et.een licensed and

unlicensed ricksha. pullers and, for the latter, fear of police .ho Cregularly sei)e and

!urn their illegal /vehicles'

2ith regard to ricksha. num!ers, 7allaghers classic 1AA# study, The Rickshaws of

Bangladesh,

put ricksha. totals in Bangladesh in 1A?? at, conservatively, %%,%%% and, in Dhaka, at

#%%,%%%E he calculated the num!er of ricksha.s as &% to % per 1%%% people' -n #%%

Bangladeshs New Age ne.spaper put the num!er of ricksha.s in Dhaka at H%%,%%%

and the num!er of ricksha. pullers at ?%%,%%% ;each ricksha. driven daily !y t.o

ricksha. pullers in t.o separate shifts<, .ith &'# million people dependent on the

ricksha.=pulling profession' 0aking further account of ricksha. o.ners and their

families, ricksha. mechanics and their families, and spare parts traders and so on, the

paper concluded that the survival of more than $ million people in Dhaka alone are

directly dependent on the ricksha. industry'

*eplogle estimates more than $@ of ricksha.s in Bangladesh are found in ur!an

areas, each accounting annually for an average of more than &%,%%% passenger miles

and almost 1%% ton=miles of goods movements' -n Dhaka, ricksha.s account for $%@ of



2

the total num!er of vehicles on the city streets, .ith more than $%@ of commuters using

the ricksha.s ;New Age #%%<'

*icksha.s, 7allagher states, contri!uted &H@ of the total value=added !y the transport

sector to the 7D9 of Bangladesh and directly supported H'$@ of the countrys total

population' *eplogle states that ricksha. pullers and those employed in ancillary

services related to ricksha.s account for almost #$@ of all employment Cin metropolitan

DhakaE 7allagher put the figure at #&@' Based on the 7allagher figures, 2hitelegg et

al concluded in #%%& that Cthe ricksha. is one of the most important sectors of the

Bangladeshi economy and provides a means of su!sistence for groups of people for

.hom there is 4uite literally no alternative'

7allagher states the average ricksha. trip in Dhaka as !eing #'$ kilometresE fe. trips

.ere less

than 1 kilometre or more than $ kilometres' typical ricksha. in Dhaka made a!out 1H

to 1$ trips per shift in t.o shifts per day, .ith a daily output of approimately 11

passenger kilometres per day' Sea!rook estimated that a ricksha. puller pedaled an

average of % kilometres per day'

0he physically demanding nature of ricksha. pulling necessarily means that most

ricksha. +ourneys are short' s Begum and Sen note, C.orn tires, rough roads and

repeated stopping and starting in !usy traffic each raise the po.er re4uired Pto Cpull a

ricksha.Q !y up to 1%% per

cent' 0hey conclude that, in these adverse conditions that is, conditions .hich are

normal in Dhaka the ricksha. pullers C.ork nearly as hard as 6lympic athletes'

Gontinual eposures to direct air pollution and traffic conditions affect the health of

ricksha. pullers, as does less than optimal ricksha. technology and fit=out'

"onetheless, in their #%%$ study, Begum and Sen cite 7allaghers statistics and note

that, as a livelihood, the importance of ricksha. pulling has increased over the past

decade'



2

final point to note is that a large proportion of ricksha. pullers appear to come from

the rural

etreme poor and .ork not only under the conditions identified a!ove !ut also .ithin a

frame.ork of poverty and malnutrition' -n addition, ricksha. pulling is unskilled and

re4uires no particular level of education' 0his eacer!ates an already negative vie. of

ricksha.s pullers, such vie. manifested, for eample, in police harassment of ricksha.

pullers and ricksha. !ans and evictions'

7overnment policies, practices and actions fail to recognise the utility .hich ricksha.s

provide'

*icksha.s provide the !asis for .hat is an etremely efficient and versatile system of

transportation' 0hey provide a door=to=door service, often at a moments notice, utilising

a rene.a!le and non=polluting ;)ero emissions< energy source' s a small and lo.

energy means of transport, this system can .ork efficiently as a feeder to a larger pu!lic

;intermodal< transport system comprised of !uses and trains' -t is also a means of

transport .hich is reasona!ly manoeuvera!le, space=efficient and easily adapted to

transporting goods as .ell as people' dditionally, as a tai service, the cycle ricksha.s

re4uire only a space allocation for Cstanding rather than parking' 0his significantly

reduces the allocation of parking areas .ithin the !usiness districts of Bangladeshs

cities'

-n terms of year round usage, ricksha.s are the most relia!le form of transport in

Dhaka' During the seasonal floods that accompany the monsoon it is often only the

cycle ricksha.s .hich are capa!le of operating in the flooded streets' -t is also the case

that, during hartals, ricksha.s are the only form of vehicular transport that is allo.ed to

operate' 0hese hartals .itness a spectacular change to the road=scape of DhakaE the

streets are transformed into a free= flo.ing mass of pedestrians and ricksha.s'

Gongestion, noise and pollution all of .hich are considered to !e endemic to Dhaka

disappear during the period of the hartal ' 2ith the !an that a hartal places on all other

modes of transport, the ricksha.s deployed in Dhaka raise their fees and increase their

.ork=rate in an attempt to meet the increased demand for transport services'



2

Groin4 ;!!u$! in Ur9an Tran!por'a'ion

Tra--i5 :on4$!'ion 0raffic congestion means delay caused !y one vehicle to others'

-t results .hen the num!er of vehicles is high to the capacity of the road net.ork'

A55id$n'! 6n the roads accidents constitute one of the ma+or social pro!lems' 0he

highest incidence of road accidents occurs ,not surprisingly ,in those cities .ith highest

rate of car o.nership'

Pu9%i5 Tran!por', 'h$ pro9%$& o- p$a8 p$riod -n practically every city the use of

pu!lic transport is concentrated in the morning and evening and rush hours' 2hatever

the volume of demand, there is invaria!ly too little capacity to permit comforta!le

traveling condition at these conditions'

P$d$!'rian 0here is lack of accessi!ility and facilities for the pedestrians'

En<iron&$n' ir pollution, noise pollution are associated .ith increased road traffic'

Par8in4 -n many cities parking difficulties are deli!erately crated !y removal of

parking space and refusal to allo. the provision of ne. car parks 'nevertheless from the

consumers point of vie., the shortage of parking space, the regulations and charges

applying to it, are another source of dissatisfaction and complaint'

Groin4 ;!!u$! in O<$ra%% Tran!por'a'ion

Non in'$4ra'$d 'ran!por' !7!'$& *oad, .ater and .ater are act separately and on

is developing !ut other deteriorating'

On%7 road !$5'ora% 9a!i! *oad transport is comparative advantage than other

competing modes' -nvestment, resource allocation, maintenance and management is

very much 4uestiona!le'



2

Un!u!'aina9%$ d$<$%op&$n' -t re4uires more sensitive to environment and social

constraints including indirect and long=term impacts .ith less energy consumption and

reduction of eternal costs' -n this case, rail and .ater is more efficient than road'

Pri<a'$ S$5'or6! road und$-in$d !sence of regulatory institutions, an appropriate

legal frame.ork and inade4uacy of capa!le and educated transport providers,

!ureaucratic procedures and practices etc are some of the factors .hich are .orking as

the o!stacle to private sector involvement'

a58 o- Ou'ard oo8in4 Approa5h 0ransport sector consider !asically national

contet not cross !order issues' -t may !ecome etremely costly for Bangladesh to

provide inter=country transport services .hen situation demand unless compati!ility .ith

neigh!oring transport systems'

S$riou! ;n!'i'u'iona% @$a8n$!! Structure is .eak and outdated' 6ther factors are

lack of resources, capacity to good governance, sound policy making and pu!lic

management, lack of coordination in different institution'

a58 o- Ci!ion Long term vision is vital for transport development' But, for the lack of

vision development efforts !ecome ad=hoc and remain unguided'

;nappropria'$ Moda% Mi

N$4%$5' o- ;n'$n'iona% Sur-a5$ Tran!por'

So&$ Po!!i9%$ So%u'ion!

2e shall no. present our proposal to solve the pro!lem' 6ne serious lacking of our

policy makers is, they al.ays look at the transportation pro!lem as a Cphysical pro!lem

and thus endeavor to solve it through Cphysical measures only' 0he fact is,

transportation pro!lem !y nature has t.o aspects: physical and administrative, and

needs to !e addressed accordingly'



2

+1. Gentral governments decision and commitment on some factors of the country

;having effect on the citys transportation<

+. Macro and micro level administrative decisions !y the ur!an authorities

+). Ur!an authorities decisions on physical development

+*. Ur!an authorities decisions on transport management

:$n'ra% 4o<$rn&$n'6! d$5i!ion on -a5'or! ha<in4 $--$5' on 5i'76!

'ran!por'a'ion

t the very !eginning the government .ould have to decide .hether they .ould

continue the tradition of the British and 9akistani colonial government or act as a

democratic government' -n democratic system not the interests of the royalties

and !ureaucrats, !ut that of the common people comes first' During British

colonial period, the !ureaucrats shre.dly served their o.n interest !y appeasing

the British royalties' During 9akistani colonial period they continued the same,

.here the affluent people from 9akistan replaced the British royalties' During themilitary ruled pseudo democracy ;from 1A$ to 1AA%< the !ureaucrats treated the

military officials as masters' Iven though democracy .as initiated in the country

in 1AA%, still the !ureaucrats are could not change their allegiance' Still today

they take up programs and pro+ects .here from they can collect money to satisfy

the political parties and their financial interests' Since multinational companies,

dishonest foreign companies and affluent !usinessmen unofficially finance the

cost of the political parties, at times the !ureaucrats are compelled to take up

pro+ects .hich can ensure the a!ove conditions' 0he case of !ri!ing one e=

prime ministers son !y a foreign telecommunication company for getting

!usiness is one of many uneposed cases'



2

Iven in democratic Bangladesh the !ureaucrats have esta!lished clear cut

difference !et.een the privileged group ;comprising of !ureaucrats, influential

politicians and affluent people< and the disadvantaged group ;i'e' the common

people<' -n the a!ove contet, no positive result should !e epected unless the

government changes the previous attitude' -n doing so they must look into the

interest of the entire country and not of Dhaka city alone' 2e put here our

specific proposal for t.o measures .hich .ould epress their honor for

democracy' 0hese are: >a? Decentrali)ation of central administration and >9?

-ntroduction of Social housing'

D$5$n'ra%iza'ion city gets the essential finance from various sources, .here

one principal source is government fund' Dhaka city is no. getting ecessive

source, the ill effect of .hich is !eing seen in price hike and ecess of .ealth

including vehicles' t this contet .e propose that some ministries !e transferred

to $ divisional head4uarters' s soon as these ministries .ould !e shifted, it .ould

on one hand ease the a!normal situation of Dhaka and enormously help the

economy of the divisional cities' "o.adays digital technology has rendered

communication etremely easy' 0he a!ove mentioned ministries .ould have theirliaison offices in Dhaka .ith such provisions that all digitally transfera!le

information and documents generated in the Divisional level .ould !e transferred

to the city and vice versa' -n addition there .ill !e provision for physical transfer of

documents in special courier .ithin #H hours' 0he Ministers and other responsi!le

personnel .orking in the divisions .ould take the help of /tele or /video conference

.hen needed'

So5ia% ou!in4 0he concept of Social 5ousing is not yet popular in Bangladesh'

-n Bangladesh .e are a.are of t.o types of housing, like: ;i< 7overnment housing

;or 4uarter<, .here only the government servants can live on highly reduced rent

and ;ii< 9rivate housing, .here !oth the common people and government servants

can live on negotia!le rents' s deviation from this concept CSocial 5ousing is the



2

house constructed !y the government .here !oth the government servants and

common people can live on negotia!le rent'

Large cities like Dhaka is not the place .here all people should live or .ish to live for all

time to come' 0he government should not patroni)e a system in .hich people, .ho are

not essential for the city may !e encouraged to live here' 0he system of renting houses

!y private o.ners helps huge num!er of non=essential people to live here' 0he present

trend of o.ned=apartment has created some hindrance against the monopolistic house

rent !usiness'

Iven though !etter than the renting system, the present system of o.ned=apartments

have got severe defect' Usually man rent house for temporary living' 6n the other hand

they purchase house or apartment for security and as an asset for all time to come'

5o.ever, the .ay o.ned=apartments are !eing constructed, sold and managed, these

no more eist as Cpermanent asset' t present the o.ners of the apartment !uilding

are given e4ual right and share on the land' -n almost all the apartment !uildings no

o.ner .ould ever !e a!le to construct an independent house on the tiny land he o.ns'

Land is usually kno.n as a permanent asset' 5o.ever, a tiny land mentioned a!ove in

no .ay can !e treated as permanent asset'

Multi=level apartment !uildings are constructed .ith cement and steel' 0hese materials

have fied life=span' 0he life of a !uilding depends upon on its design, system of

construction, environment, natural ha)ard etc' Iven if .e ignore the case of natural

ha)ard .hich may smash a !uilding at any time, all !uildings have limited life' -n

Ingineering field the life of a !rick !uilding is taken to !e a!out % years and that of a

concrete !uilding, ?%=1%% years' Iven though the prediction has !een proved to have

!een true in case of !rick !uilding, it has not !een still !een proved for concrete!uilding, !ecause the age of cement and concrete still did not came to this level' From

the availa!le information, one of the earliest apartment !uilding constructed in Mum!ai

collapsed after &% years.



2

Iven though the apartment !uildings constructed in Bangladesh at the initial stage may

get longer life, the recently !uilt !uildings may not !e that lucky' 2e can eplain the

reason here' "o.adays, the developers treat and use apartment !uildings as Csala!le

commodity' Iarlier apartment !uildings .ere constructed at the initiative of a num!er of

o.ners, .ho used to sell the ecess units to outsiders' "aturally the o.ners in their o.n

interest used to place utmost importance on the life and safety of the !uilding' But after

such !uildings have turned to Csala!le commodities the developers interest lies in

increasing the difference !et.een cost of construction and sale of units' fter the sale is

complete the developer is relieved from all responsi!ilities including the life of the

!uilding' 0he developer kno.s that good finishing fetch good price and defects like >i?

use of less .ater in curing, >ii? less cement in mortar, >iii? old or inade4uate !ars in

concrete can never !e detected after the !uilding has !een finished' 0he developer can

easily lessen the cost of construction in the follo.ing .ays:

-nade4uate structural design

Icellent structural design, !ut less use of materials during construction

Defective system of construction

For eample, curing or /application of .ater at proper time ensures strength ofconcrete' Life and strength of concrete depends upon proportion of cement and sand' -t

is possi!le for a developer to make money !y ignoring these factors, .here the

prospective !uyers have no scope to kno. those'

-n the a!ove situation it is possi!le that the apartments treated as Csala!le commodity

.ould get lesser life=span' "o. let us see .hat may happen after a !uilding is

collapsed' Let us say, a !uilding .ith H% o.ners has collapsed ten years after

construction' "o. say, the num!er of o.ners !y this time has increased to %'

Gonsidering the realities including loopholes in our +udiciary, is there any possi!ility that

these % o.ners .ould !e a!le to organi)e themselves and take a program for the

reconstruction of the !uildingR 0he inevita!le reality is to sell the land to the companies



2

at negotiated price' nd that also .ould !e possi!le if none of the % o.ners come up

.ith any la. suit regarding o.nership'

-n the a!ove situation it is logical and at the same time very easy for the government to

introduce Social 5ousing' lso the situation is ripe for it' For eample, in Dhanmondi the

land has !een given lease for AA years' fter the epiry of this period the government

may introduce social housing here' Most of the !uildings in )impur government

housing society are no. in dilapidated condition' -n place of repairing, the government

can take a program of providing social housing here' -n this endeavor the government

may go for construction of #% or more storied apartment !uildings .ith no less than 1%%

ft inter=!uilding distance' 2hen used in social housing concept the government can

collect considera!le rent from such !uildings' 0he most encouraging thing on the part of

the government .ill !e, the government can declare that for the first time in the history

of this su!=continent they could ignore and go !eyond the colonial tradition of providing

accommodation for the government servants only'

Ma5ro and Mi5ro %$<$% ad&ini!'ra'i<$ d$5i!ion! 97 'h$ Ur9an Au'hori'i$!:

-n the Macro=level solution, the ur!an authorities may decide on the managea!lephysical etent of Dhaka city' t present the land enclosed !y the .aters of Buriganga,

Sitalakhya and 0urag rivers may !e taken to !e maimum managea!le etent of the

city' 0his region may !e called Gentral Dhaka' 0hen, its etensions on the other !anks

of the rivers may !e termed as Dhaka Iast, Dhaka "orth etc' 0hese su!=regions should

!e developed as independent cities in points of utilities, infra=structure and socio=

economic facilities' Large !odied vehicles like inter=district !us, train, steamship etc'

should not !e allo.ed !eyond the .ater !arrier of the central city' lso all vehicles

entering Gentral Dhaka should !e su!+ected to payment of toll'

-t should !e noted here that unless a suita!le mechanism for controlling the vehicles

coming from all corners of the country can !e developed, all endeavors for solving

transportation pro!lem, .hatever epensive or uni4ue those might !e, .ould fail'



2

-n Micro=level solution, the ur!an authorities may go for recreating the C2ards' "o.

2ard, the mini=administrative area of the city cannot !e physically identified' -n the ne.

system of demarcation, the authority .ould take the chunk of ur!an areas enclosed !y

.ide roads on all sides and none of such roads .ould !e longer than # kilometers' Iach

of the .ards .ill !e num!ered and given a name' 0hen the population of each .ard .ill

!e enumerated' 6n the !asis of this num!er the authorities .ould find out the re4uired

num!er of essential services like

1? Medical and healthcare centre,

? Financial institutions,

)? 6ne stop !ill payment !ooth,

*? Ghildrens school,

0? Jegeta!le fish meat market,

/? Medicine shop,

? Gommunity centre,

2? 9ostal or Gourier and parcel service points,

"? *epair shop for household gadgets etc'

fter finali)ing the num!er the authority .ould invite information from the eisting

esta!lishments' 0hen the ur!an authority .ould give recognition to the re4uisite num!er

of such esta!lishments on the !asis of their facilities and locations' 0he recogni)ed

esta!lishments .ould !e allo.ed to continue activities at reduced ta, .here as others

.ould have to pay taes at enhanced rate' 0his rule .ould help to esta!lish the re4uired

num!er of facilities, and at the same time, eliminate the ecess ones from each .ard'

s soon as the inha!itants .ould find their essential facilities .ithin # kilometers ;.hich

is .ithin .alking limit of Bangladesh< they .ould use fe.er vehicles for availing these

purposes' -nside each 2ard, user=friendly vehicles like cycle, trolley etc' should !e

encouraged and entry of !us, truck etc' should !e restricted and controlled'

Ph7!i5a% d$<$%op&$n'!



2

i< FOOTPAT 0he ur!an authorities should place immense importance on

footpath' 0hose should !e constructed .ith specifications to satisfy the

follo.ing: ;i< 9eoples easy .alking, ;ii< (ids normal travel and also in

peram!ulator, ;iii< Movement of handicapped persons .heel chair and ;iv<

9eoples movement .ith loaded trolleys' -n all possi!le cases those should !e

covered .ith soft or hard roof'

ii< FOOT OCER BR;DGE 0he travel time in the ur!an area can !e shortened !y

speedy vehicles' Such movements ho.ever, cause road accidents' -t is

interesting that even though Dhaka city is at present eperiencing

tremendous traffic +am resulting in slo. movement, there is meager road

accident' -t has !een o!served that during long holidays .hen the traffic in

the city decreases and the cars move at speed there happen accidents' Since

our endeavor is to shorten travel time, .e have to ensure 4uicker velocity of

vehicles' -n all possi!le cases these should !e covered to protect people

during inclement .eather'

Tran!por' &ana4$&$n'

-n a democratic country the government cannot discourage people from using

cars' 5o.ever, it is crystal clear that the narro. and inade4uate roads of Dhaka

city in no .ay can sustain the cars already o.ned !y the present population, not

to say anything a!out their future num!er, taking into account the increase of

population allo.a!le under the provisions made !y the ur!an authorities' -n such

a situation the solution is to ensure such type of alternate arrangement that even

the o.ners .ould prefer to use those' s part of this program superior 4uality

school !uses need !e introduced at su!sidi)ed rate for the children' Staff !uses

.ith only t.o=times=per=day use is in no .ay economic for Bangladesh and it

should !e discouraged !y imposing heavy ta' Ouite often it is said that

introduction of luury !uses .ould !e a!le to discourage use of cars' 0his is

partly correct' s a matter of fact such !uses in no .ay .ould !e a!le to attract



2

the car o.ners, unless there is efficient and comforta!le system of ;i< 0icketing,

;ii< 2aiting, ;iii< Boarding and ;iv< 0ime=maintaining provisions' Jesting all these

in the hands of the profit=hungry transport !usinessmen can never ensure the

epected goal' 0he government .ould have to treat it as a service sector and

manage things, .here the vehicles may !e o.ned !y private o.ners !ut

management .ill !e done !y the government'

1+ S'$p! -or B$''$r Tran!por' S7!'$&

1. A55$!!i9i%i'7 -or A%%

0he purpose of transport is to provide access to the contacts, services and goods

that .e all need in an e4uita!le, lo.=cost and lo.=impact .ay' 0ransport policy

should not fall into the trap of seeing mo!ility as an end in its o.n right and of

simply promoting more and more vehicle movement at higher and higher speeds'

ccessi!ility planning aims to ensure that destinations remain .ithin easy reach

and seeks to maintain the via!ility of diverse and plentiful transport choices,

particularly non=motorised transport, pu!lic transport and paratransit'

. So5ia% E(ui'7

lmost every.here, transport priorities serve the poor !adly and devote most

investment to the mo!ility of affluent vehicle o.ners' 0he negative impacts of

transport fall most heavily on disadvantaged people= those living in poverty,

people .ith disa!ilities, .omen, the young, the frail elderly and people .ith

insecure housing rights'

Social e4uity demands that highest priority should go to pu!lic transport, .alking

and non=motorised vehicles that are accessi!le to almost everyone and .hich

have lo. impacts'



2

). E5o%o4i5a% Su!'aina9i%i'7

Both glo!al sustaina!ility and the local environment of settlements are seriously

threatened !y overuse of private motor vehicles' Local impacts of transport, such

as noise and air pollution, are etreme in many developing countries of sia like

Bangladesh' 9laces .hose transport systems contri!ute least to environmental

damage are those .ith lo.est car and motorcycle use and highest use of pu!lic

transport, cycling and .alking'

*. $a%'h and Sa-$'7

0ransport has a ma+or impact on health and safety' Motor vehicles are

responsi!le for around %@ of air pollution in many of the .orlds ma+or cities'

2orld.ide more than 1'# million people are killed every year in road crashes and

$% million are seriously in+ured' -n most developing countries, more than %@ of

the victims are pedestrians and other vulnera!le road users' 0ravel is safest in

places that provide plentiful pu!lic transport and facilities for cyclists and

pedestrians'

0. Pu9%i5 Par'i5ipa'ion and Tran!par$n57

0ransport planning is al.ays the !etter for involving the communities .ho are

!eing planned for' 0ransparency and open information also help to prevent

corrupt practices that hurt the .hole society' 0raditional transport planning

distrusts community involvement and insists that it !e left to the Ceperts' But

around the .orld, more and more community organisations are realising that they

can and must take action'

/. E5ono&7 and o5o!'

0he most sustaina!le, people=centered and e4uita!le transport policies are lo.

cost and include restraint of the highest=cost mode of transport the private car'

By restraining cars and motorcycles and charging them their full costs, cities can



2

avoid or postpone the need for epensive roads .hile retaining high use of lo.=

cost pu!lic transport, .alking and !icycles'

. ;n-or&a'ion and Ana%7!i!

0o take action, communities need to understand the forces that are pushing

transport priorities in the .rong directions' 0hey need solid arguments and

information to dispel the myths propounded in support of destructive pro+ects and

policies' Destructive proposals .ill not stand up to critical scrutiny' 2e can all

learn from the successes and failures of other campaigns around the .orld'

2. Ad<o5a57

Unless voices are raised from local communities ;especially poor communities<,

pedestrians, !us riders, and non=motorised vehicle ;"MJ< users in transport

planning, then only the voices of motorists, truckers and !ig !usiness .ill !e

heard !y decision makers' 9eoples advocacy has made a dramatic difference to

transport plans in diverse

places'

". :apa9i%i'7 9ui%din4

0here is an urgent need to !uild capacity and commitment among transport

decision makers to adapt to the ne. paradigms that are replacing car=oriented

mo!ility planning' Gommunity organisations also urgently need help to !uild their

a!ility to assert their rights to speak up on transport issues, to understand the

fundamental issues, and to kno. .here to turn for help'

1+. N$'or8in4

"et.orking involves actively making contacts and encouraging information

echange and colla!oration .hile al.ays respecting the independence of diverse

participants' 0he active sharing involved in net.orking opens up creative

opportunities for action and synergy' 0hrough generous net.orking, .e can all

gain ideas, information, lessons, encouragement, and solidarity to further our

mutual goals'



2

Op'ion! and A5'ion! -or B$''$r Tran!por'a'ion Mana4$&$n'

A55$!!

ccess to people, places, goods and services is important to the social and economic

.ell !eing of communities' 0ransportation is a key means, !ut not the only means,

through .hich access can !e achieved'

S'ra'$4i5 Dir$5'ion!

T D$&and Mana4$&$n'

*educe the need for travel .hile protecting social and economic needs for access !y

changing ur!an form, promoting ne. communications technologies, and developing

more efficient packaging etc'

T Di<$r!i-7in4 Op'ion!

-mprove access !y diversifying transportation options, giving people more choices as toho. they meet their access needs'

P$op%$ and :o&&uni'i$!

0ransportation systems are a critical element of a strong economy, !ut can also

contri!ute directly to !uilding community and enhancing 4uality of life'


T Ur9an P%annin4 and Tran!por'a'ion P%annin4

Goncentrate ur!an gro.th, limit spra.l and provide for more mied land use through

ur!an structure and land use policies' 0his .ould reduce demand ;especially for



2

automo!ile trips< !y moving origins and destinations closer together and also help

reduce ha!itat destruction and loss of agricultural and recreational lands'

7ive priority to less polluting, lo.er impact modes of transportation in the design of

transportation systems and ur!an areas' 9edestrian and cycling paths should !e

provided as attractive and safe alternatives to cars'

Maintain and enhance the health and via!ility of ur!an pu!lic transit systems'

-ntegrate transport modes, .hether for passengers or goods, in order to provide

more efficient goods movement, and to increase the availa!ility of lo.er impact

transportation options such as pu!lic transit'

9rotect historical sites and archaeological resources, reduce noise pollution, and

consider aesthetics in the planning, design and construction of transportation

systems'

T D$5i!ion Ma8in4 Pro5$!!$!

Insure pu!lic and private sector stakeholders coordinate their transportation

planning, development and delivery activities' 0hese transportation decisions should

also !e integrated .ith environment, health, energy and ur!an land=use decisions'

Make transportation=related decisions in an open and inclusive process' -n for the

pu!lic a!out transportation options and impacts, and encourage them to participate

in decision making so that the needs of different communities ;i'e' rural vs' ur!anE

cyclists vs' drivers, etc'< can !e understood and accounted for'

nticipate environmental or social impacts of transportation=related decisions rather

than trying to react to them after they have occurred' 0his .ill result in considera!le

cost savings since transportation decisions often involve costly, long=term

infrastructure investments'

En<iron&$n'a% =ua%i'7

5uman activities can overload the environments finite capacity to a!sor! .aste,

physically modify or destroy ha!itats, and use resources more rapidly than they can !e



2

regenerated or replaced' Ifforts must !e made to develop transportation systems that

minimi)e physical and !iological stress, staying .ithin the assimilative and regenerative

capacities of ecosystems, and respecting the ha!itat re4uirements of other species'


T En<iron&$n'a% Pro'$5'ion and @a!'$ R$du5'ion

Minimi)e transportation=related air emissions and discharges of contaminants to

surface ;fresh and salt .ater< and ground .ater'

Minimi)e the generation of .aste through each phase of the life=cycle of

transportation vehicles, vessels and infrastructure' *educe, reuse and recycle'

Insure that the rate of use of rene.a!le resources does not eceed rates of

regeneration, and non=rene.a!le resource use is minimi)ed'

Insure emergency management systems are in place in order to respond to spills

and other transportation=related accidents'

T and U!$

Imphasi)e compact ur!an form in order to reduce ha!itat destruction and loss of

agricultural and recreational lands around ur!an areas'

Minimi)e the impact on natural ha!itat and the .ildlife and people it supports in the

design, construction and operation of inter=city transportation systems and

infrastructure, including, for eample, high.ays, pipelines, and rail.ays'

T En$r47 U!$

*educe fossil fuel consumption and emissions through efficiencies and demand

management'

9romote the use of alternative and rene.a!le energy'



2

;n!'i'u'iona% D$<$%op&$n'!

-nstitutional reform to create ne. institution andKor revitali)e the eisting ones .ould !e

crucial to achieving the sustaina!le transport system of the future' 0he eisting

institution need to !e reformed' 0he reform .ould involve redefining the role of various

institutions and changes in organi)ational structure and operational practices' 0he

institutions must !e a!le to operate in a multisectoral and multilateral environment' 0o

prepare the pu!lic sector to assume its changing role, revitali)ation of the eisting

institutions should focus on capacity !uilding, allocation of resources, access to ne.

technology especially related to -0 etc' long .ith reforms and revitali)ation of eisting

institutions, setting of ne. institutions especially regulatory !odies and reforming of

eisting regulatory regimes .ould also !e re4uired to facilitate participation of the

private sector, promoting competition and also to protect social interest at large' 0here

is also a need to redefine the concept of national interest in transport policy

development' 0he national economic policy of Bangladesh is !ecoming out.ard

looking' 0he transport policies need to keep pace .ith this trend' 0he transport system

must cater to national needs, .hich no. re4uire more interactions .ith the outside

.orld' 0he future transport policies should therefore !e !ased on an out.ard looking

approach'

Besides this, need for clear frame.ork for delegation

T llocate responsi!ility !et.een levels of government clearly !y la.

T 9lan inter=governmental transfers to !e consistent .ith the allocation of responsi!ility

T Link statutorily imposed o!ligations to specific channels of finance

E5ono&i5 Cia9i%i'7

Sustaina!le transportation systems must !e cost effective' -f ad+ustment costs are

incurred in the transition to more sustaina!le transportation systems they should !e

e4uita!ly shared, +ust as current costs should !e more e4uita!ly shared'




2

T Fu%%$r:o!' A55oun'in4

-dentify and recogni)e pu!lic su!sidies ;hidden or other.ise< to all modes of

transport and make transportation decisions accordingly'

*eflect the full social, economic and environmental costs ;including long=term costs<

of each mode of transport or transport related practice as accurately as possi!le in

market prices'

Insure users pay a fuller share of all costs, .hile respecting e4uity concerns'

*esearch and 0echnological -nnovation

9romote research and development of innovative alternative technologies that

improve access and help protect the environment' 0he emphasis should !e on

providing a .ide range of transportation options'

T Ho9 :r$a'ion

Gonsider the potential economic and employment !enefits that could !e derived from

the restructuring of our transportation systems'

:on5%u!ion

s of no. the story of the Bangladesh governments failure to solve the transportation

pro!lem of Bangladesh is a story discussed even !y the kids' Ivery time a ne.

government rises to po.er it promises to solve it and declares some programs' t times

they impose restrictions, mostly on the movement of vehicles used !y the poor, spends

considera!ly on physical developments that might help the rich class' -n the long run,

ho.ever, it is seen that in place of solving, those have further complicated the pro!lem'

lso, the in4uiry team formed !y the contemporary government reveals corruption and

kick=!ack cases of the previous government'

"o., Bangladesh is !eing ruled !y the government formed !y Bangladesh .ami

League and its allies' 0hey have .on landslide victory in the election held in #%%A' s



2

usual, this government also has revealed some corruptions of the previous government

in this sector' Follo.ing the suit of their predecessors they have epressed promises

and declared programs for solution' 2ith their previous eperiences the common

people of the country and specially the suffering population of Dhaka city kno., their

promises and programs are going to meet the previous fate' -t really is destined to !e

so, !ecause never !efore any government felt for in=depth analysis of this etremely

complicated pro!lem'

2e have endeavored to raise the issues related .ith this etremely complicated

pro!lem' 0he limited page of the paper does not allo. detail discussion' 2e have

endeavored to mention the vital and decisive points, .ithout the consideration of .hich

such a complicated pro!lem cannot !e solved' -f seen superficially some of the points

may seem to !e of secondary or tertiary importance' second thought ho.ever .ould

reveal that those are 4uite important' -gnoring these in fact resulted in the failures of the

previous programs'

-t may !e seen that the proposals .e have placed a!ove is not at all epensive in

comparison .ith .hat the government at times suggest' 6ne may easily imagine the

enormous cost of flyovers, epress.ays, mono=rails, metro etc' 0hese solutions .ould

in no .ay reduce the travel time and ependiture of the people' -n our proposal there is

no proposal for such physical development' Iven though some of our proposal may

seem costly for the time !eing, those might prove economic in the long run' 0hus

shifting of the ministries from Dhaka city to a distant divisional city might seem Ccostly

no.' But after the shifting has taken place the government may discover that running

this ministry in that location is much cheaper than doing the same in Dhaka'

rrangements for lessening the need for +ourney !y arranging or re=arranging the

necessities near to the place of living, encouraging people to .alk on easier footpaths

etc' .ould lessen peoples dependence on cars and !uses, and that .ould save huge

foreign currency of this poor the country that is no. spent in import of cars, !uses,

spare parts and fuels'



2

-n materiali)ing our proposal .hat the government needs is not money, !ut courage and

honesty' 0hey .ould need democratic and mission=like mentality to !reak apart the

colonial traditions' Let us hope the present government .ould !e a!le to sho. that'

0he various .ays and means of solving transportation pro!lem !y using less num!er of

vehicles is something that the physical planners of Bangladesh .ould have to Cinvent

!y themselves' 0hey .ould not get any assistance in this endeavor from the developed

countries, !ecause such measures go highly against their car=related !usiness'

Bangladesh is a poor country .ith ecess of population and no dearth of pro!lems' For

such a country failure in any costly program may prove fatal' 2e hope, in vie. of their

numerous failures in the past, .e !elieve and re4uest that this time the concerned

authorities .ould strive for honest and intelligent solutions'

0he ma+or aspects considered in this paper are issuesK pro!lems of present transport

management, development and policy action for !etter transportation in Bangladesh'

0he goals of an efficient transport system must !e linked .ith fostering economic

development, enhancing the 4uality of the environment, reducing energy consumption,

promoting transportation=friendly development patterns and encouraging fair and

e4uita!le access and safe mo!ility to residents of different socioeconomic groups' 0he

eisting institution should !e defined roles and make ready in the ne. environment'

-ntegrated and comprehensive approach .ould ensure .ith all stakeholders' 0he paper

in particular focuses on the elements re4uiring immediate attention' Best practices in

the developing countries need to agree to a package of measures for achieving

sustaina!le mo!ility'



2

R$-$r$n5$!

...'google'com

M'M' 5o4ue and N' B' lam

CStrategies for safer and Sustaina!le Ur!an 0ransport in Bangladesh BUI0,

Dhaka, Bangladesh.

shan, 5' M' ;#%%$<, C "eed for a Sustaina!le 9u!lic 0ransport System in Dhaka

Gity,

the Gapital of Bangladesh

M'M' 5o4ue, B' (hondaker and N' B' lam

CUr!an 0ransport -ssues and -mprovement in Bangladesh, ccident *esearch

Gentre ;*G<, BUI0, Dhaka, Bangladesh'

Barkat, !dul, Mati Ur *ahman and Manik Bose' CFamily 9lanning Ghoice

Behaviour in Ur!an Slums of Bangladesh: n Iconometric pproach, Asia-

Pacific Population Journal

Barter, ' Transport and Urban Povert in Asia! A Brief "ntroduction to the #e

"ssues' 9aper prepared for the *egional Symposium on Ur!an 9overty in sia,

Fukuoka, 1AA?'

Begum, no.ara CThe socioeconomic condition of the pavement dwellers of

$haka cit% '

*esearch *eport "o 1$%' Dhaka: B-DS, 1AA'

Begum, Sharifa and Binayak Sen' C9ulling ricksha.s in the city of Dhaka: a .ay

out of povertyR, &nvironment ' Urbani(ation 1, no # ;#%%$<: 11=#$'

CS0*I"705I"-"7 B"7LDIS5: 0*"S96*0, SUS0-"B-L-03 "D

BI00I* L-JIS !y David 5odgkinson and Sandie 2alton=Illery'

http://www.google.com/

http://www.google.com/



2

C0ransport System in Bangladesh: -ssues and 6ptions for Sustaina!le

Development !y

S'M' Sohel Mahmud

Mohammad 2ahidur *ahman

Shahne.a) 5asanat=I= *a!!i

Questionnaire

2e are engaged in a particular survey' 6ur topic is Management Failure in

0ransportation Sector in Bangladesh' 0o complete our survey .e seek your

cooperation' 3ou can cooperate .ith us !y filling in the follo.ing 4uestionnaire' 3our

response cooperation is etremely valua!le for our survey' 2e .ill !e grateful to you

if you ans.er the follo.ing 4uestions'

1' "ame:

#' ge:

&' Gontact "um!er:

H' 6ccupation:

$' Salary Scale: ;monthly in BD0<

a' !elo. #%%%%

!' !elo. $%%%% !ut a!ove #%%%%

c' a!ove $%%%% !ut under 1%%%%%

d' a!ove 1%%%%%

' 0ypes of modes of transport surface:

a' *oad.ays !' 2ater.ays c' *ail.ays d' ir.ays

' Do you think our transportation sector does not provide sufficient serviceR



2

a< 3es !< "o

?' 2hat is the ma+or reason !ehind this improper serviceR

a'

Mismanagement

c' 6ver population

!' 9olitical unrest d' Gorruption

A' 2hich mode of transportation service is suffering from highest level of

mismanagementR

a' road.ays !' .ater.ays c' rail.ays d' air.ays

1%' Do you think management failure in transportation sector is the main reason !ehind

the underdeveloped transportation serviceR

a< 3es !< "o

11' Do you think government can do anything for the improvement of transportation

sectorR

a< 3es !< "o

1#' 2hat are the main reason !ehind the loss in transport sector specially rail.ayR

a' Mismanagement c' Lack of a.areness

!' 9olitical unrest d' Gorruption

1&' 2hat is the main reason !ehind management failure in transportation sector of

BangladeshR



a' Lack of appropriate

policy

c' Lack of a.areness

!' Ithical pro!lem d' Gorruption

1H' Do you think improvement in transportation sector can lead to economicdevelopmentR

a< 3es !< "o

1$' Do you think improvement in transportation sector is possi!leR

a< 3es !< "o

1' Do you think change in management policy leads to improvement in transportation

sectorR

a< 3es !< "o

1' Do you think transportation pro!lem is one of the ma+or causes leading our country

to !eing an underdeveloped countryR

a< 3es !< "o

1?' Do you think management is very important in transportation sectorR

a< 3es !< "o

kru finaltransportation sector of bangladesh

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