10-km tailback near Daulatdia

Eid holidaymakers have been suffering since Saturday morning to cross the Padma River as a 10-kilometer long tailback was created on Dhaka-Khulna highway and regional road adjacent to Daulatdia ferry terminalProthom Alo

Eid holidaymakers have been suffering since Saturday morning to cross the Padma River as a 10-kilometer long tailback was created on Dhaka-Khulna highway and regional road adjacent to Daulatdia ferry terminal, reports UNB.

Hundreds of Dhaka-bound passengers thronged the ferry terminal after celebrating Eid with dear and near ones in the village home.

But due to a shortage of ferries and rush of Dhaka-bound passengers, a long traffic jam was created on the highway and regional road connected to the ferry ghat.

Hundreds of vehicles were stranded on the road and people had to wait for five to seven hours in Goalanda for crossing the river.

BIWTC officials said the tailback was created near Daulatdia ferry terminal due to huge number of private cars as people were returning to Dhaka to join the office on Sunday.

The authorities are trying to reduce the traffic gridlock but nothing works properly due to the extra pressure of vehicles.

Rafiqul Islam, a job holder of a private company in Dhaka said, he along with his family celebrated Eid in his village home in Faridpur.

The vehicle distance between his home and Daulatdia ghat is only 40 minutes. He started the journey in the morning and remained stuck in traffic jam for seven hours.

Many people were seen going to the ferry terminal on foot as they wanted to avoid long traffic jam on the Dhaka-Khulna highway.

Garment worker Parul said, “After Eid vacation, my office will reopen tomorrow (Sunday). But I am stranded on the road near the ferry ghat for hours. Probably, I will not get enough time for taking rest before starting the office tomorrow morning."

Daulatdia ghat police station officer-in-charge Swapan Kumar Majumder said an additional 200 police members have been deployed at the ghat. They are patrolling at various points of the highway and are working to reduce traffic jams, he said.