"I've been roaming around for fuel for two days. There's none. I haven't been able to earn a single fare."
Motorcycle ride-share driver Imam Rahman has spent the past two days moving from one filling station to another across the capital in search of fuel. Without it, he has been unable to carry passengers or earn an income.
Talking to this correspondent around 2:00pm on Thursday at Karim and Sons Filling Station in Motijheel, Imam stood in a queue of more than 250 motorcycles waiting for fuel. The station owner said tensions had been running high, with at least three altercations breaking out between customers attempting to jump the queue, drivers already in line, and pump staff since morning. Police have been deployed to maintain the situation.
"I've gone from one pump to another for two days and still haven't managed to get fuel," Imam said. "I don't know if I'll get any today. Allah knows everything, maybe-but the suffering is immense. These past two days have been completely lost. I couldn't even earn a fare."
He said he waited eight hours at a filling station in Rampura's Hajipara area on Wednesday, only for supplies to run out just as his turn approached. He then visited more than ten stations in Mohakhali, Tejgaon and Asadgate, finding most closed due to shortages. At those still operating, the queues were so long that he gave up trying.
Early Thursday, Imran joined a queue at Ramna Filling Station at Matsyabhaban Intersection at 4:00am and waited until noon. With no fuel arriving from the depot, he left and headed to another station in Paribagh, only to be discouraged again by the length of the line. He eventually made his way to Motijheel, where he was still waiting.
"I used to work for a pharmaceutical company," he added. "After leaving that job, I've been looking for another. For now, I depend on ride-sharing. But this situation is unbearable. Not just me-millions of bikers are suffering like this. There's nothing we can do."
Imran's experience is far from unique. Many drivers reported waiting for hours, often in vain. At around 1:00pm, Kais Mohammad, a private car driver at HK Filling Station in Arambagh, said he had waited 11 hours the previous day without success. He returned to the queue at 5:00am on Thursday in hopes of better luck.
Sultan believes the fuel crisis has worsened despite the ongoing ceasefire involving the United States, Israel and Iran. "Instead of improving, the situation is getting worse," he said. "We are suffering more each day. It takes longer to get fuel now than before."
Compared with the past two weeks, Thursday saw the longest queues yet at fuel stations across the capital.
At Rajarbagh Filling Station around 11:00am, the line of motorcycles extended beyond BNN Hospital and deep into the Shantibagh area. Previously, queues had stretched only as far as Shahidbagh. The number of motorcycles waiting rose from a previous high of 115 to 223, while private cars increased from 89 to 166.
A similar scene unfolded at a fuel pump in Arambagh. Where queues had earlier reached Fakirapool, they wound past Rajarbagh Police Box into the AGB Colony area. Motorcycle numbers surged from 237 to 394, while private cars increased from 232 to 329.
At Karim and Sons Filling Station in Motijheel, queues that once ended near the Bangladesh Football Federation building now extended along Gazi Dastagir Road. The number of motorcycles climbed from a previous peak of 234 to 302.
With supplies dwindling and demand surging, the capital's fuel crisis shows little sign of easing, leaving thousands of drivers stranded-and livelihoods on hold.
