Strengthen BRTA for better road transport management

No attempts or achievements are visible over restoring order on the roads. The authorities concerned, too, were not active to implement the road transport act after it had been passed in parliament. The last known report is of a High Court bench order that sought the patrol pumps to stop supplying oil to unfit vehicles. It also sought the formation of a task force comprising an executive magistrate and a police officer led by a deputy commissioner, but this does not ensure that proper management would be restored on roads.

As the legal directives reflected the will to restore order on highways, experts have welcomed those, in principle. They have, however, raised some fundamental questions. They pointed to the fact that including Bangladesh, countries in the world has structures that allow only the regulatory organisations to screen vehicular fitness. Here, BRTA (Bangladesh Road Transport Authority) is chiefly responsible to carry out the task. Despite so, the court seeks to form the taskforce which will be led by a deputy commissioner. Though the BRTA has district-level network, its capacity is poor. BRTA has a workforce of 800 for the management of four million vehicles, of which 200 are empty. It has one inspector per district and 10 executive magistrates.

It is impossible for 10 magistrates and 800 people to manage Dhaka alone. This is the transport sector which is a key source of revenue. The people continue to suffer in receiving services due to BRTA's manpower crisis. BRTA has told the court that at least 400,000 unfit vehicles are plying in the country. It's almost impossible for the institution to take any effective measures with the existing workforce. We expect that the court will compel the government to take some permanent measures to increase BRTA's capacity. The DC, police and magistrates do not stay at the same place as transfer is common in such jobs. So the duty to free the roads of anarchy should completely be undertaken by the BRTA.

The High Court, in 2014, had ordered the deputy commissioners at several districts of the country to withdraw human haulers from the highways. A few preventive measures were taken, but they were not finally implemented. Plying of unfit and improper vehicles along the highway should not be seen from a legal perspective as mass people in remote areas have embraced the vehicles. Alternatives are required to implement their withdrawal. There should be a long-term plan that ensures loans to owners, drivers' training and construction of bypass.

There had been so many politics and ridiculous calculations over the safe road movement. The demonstrators were tortured and humiliated, but anarchy still rules the roads. Even the primary statistics too point that the scenario is worsening. In January 2019, the number of deaths was below 400, but the number is almost 450 in January this year. All these point that a huge reformation is required in the transport sector. We expect progress regarding the ongoing case with the High Court.