Rickshaws to be not allowed on three major Dhaka roads

Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) Mayor Sayeed Khokon on Wednesday said that rickshaws will be stopped from plying three major roads in the capital from July 7.

The roads include Kuril to Sayedabad via Rampura and Khilgaon; Gabtoli to Azimpur via Asad Gate; and Science Laboratory Intersection to Shahbagh Intersection.

He also said that steps are on to free footpaths in the capital from grabbers and remove unauthorised vehicles from the streets gradually in a bid to improve the traffic situation in Dhaka.

The mayor said this after emerging from a meeting of a special committee formed in this regard at his office in the capital today.

Talking to journalists, Mayor Khokon said Dhaka City Corporation will begin a week-long drive on three selected roads in the capital to implement the agenda of the committee.

In these three roads, officials of DCC and the Traffic Division of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) will work together to stop plying of rickshaws and other unauthorised vehicles and evict the grabbers of the footpaths, the mayor said.

After one week, the committee will hold another meeting to evaluate the outcome of the weeklong drive and decide on the next course of action, he added.

Gradually, the streets of Dhaka will be freed from footpath grabber and illegal vehicles, Mayor Khokon added.

On June 19, Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader announced forming the special committee, led by Mayor Sayeed Khokon, at the 12th board meeting of Dhaka Transport Coordination Authority (DTCA).

Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) Mayor Md Atiqul Islam, representatives from police and Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) have been included in the committee.

The committee was formed to identify and remove unauthorised rickshaws, auto-rickshaws and battery-run rickshaws off the streets and free footpaths from grabbers in next two months to ease commute of Dhaka dwellers and improve traffic condition in the city.

Kamruzzaman