A pedestrian was seen crossing the Shahbag intersection on foot instead of using the overbridge around 12pm Thursday (Mar 21). When asked why didn’t he go for the over bridge, the man clearly annoyed, responded, “The road is empty.” Then why didn’t you use the Zebra Crossing? He said, “It’s far away and I need to go to a store which is right on the other side of the road.”
Around 6pm a number of university students were gossiping on the foot over-bridge near Sobhanbag’s Metro Shopping Mall. Pedestrians were seen crossing the road on foot down below. Some were even wearing headphones, while others were carrying children with them.
Now the question is if these pedestrians suffer a road accident, who will be the one to blame? The students, who are also among the road-safety protesters, said, “Awareness has to be raised among people. They must be made aware that one should only cross road on foot when traffic has halted.”
On the busy Kazi Nazrul Islam Avenue, one person was seen waving to a vehicle at the Bangla Motor intersection and then cross the road towards Iskaton.
When asked why he stopped the vehicle like that and if vehicle must stop for him, he said, “I have pain in my waist joint and I’m not allowed to climb stairs. If I wait until the vehicles stop to cross roads, it would take 15 minutes.”
Ditching foot over-bridges and crossing the roads on foot is a familiar scene across the capital.
Moreover, it seems to have become a custom to build a foot over-bridge in a place where a fatal accident takes place.
The latest of such example was in Pragati Sarani where a university student Abrar Ahmed was killed after being run over by a bus. Soon after the tragedy, a foundation stone of a foot over bridge was set up there and the Dhaka North mayor announced that the bridge will be named after the deceased.
The logical grounds of constructing foot over-bridges when they are in effect useless is questionable to many.
Urban planners say, installing foot over-bridges is not encouraged in any modern city of the world.
The best way for people to cross road is on flat roads. With that in mind, people must be made aware to use the Zebra Crossing to cross the roads, they say.
Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) Mayor Sayeed Khokon said, “Some people do use foot over-bridge, and there are others who don’t. The reason for making foot over bridge in any place is to ensure safe crossing of roads.”
“Reasons behind people still choosing to not use the bridge is simply lack of awareness,” added the mayor.
When Dhaka North Mayor Atiqul Islam was asked whether, making foot over-bridge at the place of accident is the solution, he said, “There are plans regarding where foot over-bridges will be built. However, making those is not enough. We must create awareness so that people use them.”