Amid the National Traffic Week, over 400 unfit vehicles, plying on inter-district routes, have disappeared overnight in Sirajganj.
The scarcity of public transport has hit hard travellers across the district.
On Aug 5, the government announced National Traffic Week amid waves of protests demanding safer roads in Dhaka, which later spread across the country.
The Jul 29 deaths of two college students on Dhaka’s Airport Road triggered the protests.
District’s deputy commissioner warned of stern actions at a recent meeting of local road and transport committee (RTC).
“The RTC meeting decided to operate mobile court against traffic violations and unfit vehicles on the roads,” Additional District Magistrate Firoz Mahmud told Bangla Tribune.
Law enforcement agencies are operating regularly, Sirajganj police spokesperson Abu Yusuf said before adding, “We are filing cases and imposing fine in case of unfit vehicles plying on the roads.”
Transport owners, however, are negligent over updating documents and fixing unfit vehicles.
Sources at the Sirajgnaj Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) offices told Bangla Tribune that a large number of the vehicles used for inter-district services were unfit.
Blaming owners of repeated negligence, Sirajganj BRTA Assistant Director Altab J Hossain said the government can earn Tk 70 to 80 million in revenues if the papers of vehicles are updated.
Sources said the owners have kept a large number of unfit vehicles ready to resume operation for Eid journeys.
Transport leaders admitted that documents of most of the vehicles need to be updated.
Sirajganj Bus Owners’ Association President Abdul Hadi Almaji Zinnah told Bangla Tribune, “Most of the vehicles’ owners face large fines as they repeatedly failed to update their vehicle’s registration.”
“We have repeatedly requested the authorities to cut the fines. Only then it will be possible to update,” said Zinnah.
Owners, who don’t have the necessary documents, have refrained themselves from operating buses fearing cases and fines, said Ansar Ali, who is the general secretary of the district’s Transport Workers’ Union.