Is It Nobody's Headache? Part-II
No government initiative in checking unwanted deaths on roads are visible though people continue to lose their lives in road accidents every day.
Still no effective remedial steps to curb the trend and make the roads safe for all is seen in the country. An initiative to amend the Road Transport Act of 2018 based on proposals from transport owners and workers is underway while rules for the law are yet to be framed.
The Road Transport Act of 2018, which was enacted following the death of the two students on July 29 in 2018 because of reckless driving, has also not yet been fully implemented. The nationwide student protests broke out in response to the deaths of two Shaheed Ramiz Uddin Cantonment College students in a road accident in the capital in 2018.
Although the High Court issued 22 specific directives to ensure road safety across Bangladesh nearly seven years ago, the government's initiatives are not practically visible in checking unwanted deaths on roads, experts said.
They expressed their concern about the growing number of deaths due to unstoppable road accidents and blamed the lack of firm determination on the part of the government to reduce such accidents and loss of lives.
Road safety experts and activists claimed that because the law had not yet been properly applied and continued to be violated, road safety was being undermined and things were getting worse.
Data compiled by the Passenger Welfare Association of Bangladesh showed that road accidents killed 398 people over two weeks around Eid-ul-Azha --- the highest toll in seven years. During the period, at least 774 people were also injured. No doubt the statistics are incomplete as some incidents were neither recorded properly nor published in newspapers.
According to the Bangladesh Road Transport Authority, 2,635 people were killed in road accidents in 2018, 4,138 were killed in 2019, 3,918 were killed in 2020 and 5,088 people were killed in 2021.
BRTA prepared the report based on the first information from the police, which also indicated that road accidents were on the rise in the country.
In a circular published earlier on August 28 in 2018, the BRTA stated that public transportation drivers with legal professional driving licences for light vehicles and at least a year of experience could apply for licences for medium vehicles, and those with licences for medium vehicles and at least a year of experience could apply for licences for heavy vehicles. Following several extensions, the facilities ended in June 2021.
'Mismanagement, corruption, extortion and procession of deaths are still on the roads,' according to Dhaka Metropolitan Police (traffic). 'Irregularities on roads are normal. The question is about the rate of irregularities,' he said.
Ignoring and violating the traffic rules have become a regular feature in this country. For the traffic police, it is difficult to enforce the regulations properly due to non-cooperation from road users and various stakeholders, according to police.
In many cases, the police, neglecting legal parameters, also allow unfit vehicles and illegal activities on roads, according to Passenger Welfare Association of Bangladesh.
Most drivers are not properly trained, and there is no serious move to improve their skills and traffic knowledge, sources added.
Transport illiteracy among commuters and pedestrians is another problem. Regular training and awareness-building activities are needed for drivers and others.
The law cannot hold a driver liable for causing serious injuries by driving carelessly and recklessly, according to draft proposals. Additional proposals included lowering the minimum educational requirements for three-wheeler drivers and making offences linked to overloading and vehicle modification subject to bail.
