Home
+
Published : 27 May 2026, 02:20 PM
Rain has added to the woes faced by travellers in Gazipur rushing home to see friends and family on Eid-ul-Azha amid traffic congestion and demand for transport outstripping the availability of seats.
Homebound travellers were caught in severe traffic jams throughout Tuesday night, with some waiting hours to travel only a few kilometres. Even then, there was a shortage of transport for all those eager to make the journey.
Naojor Highway Police chief Saugatul Alam said, “A massive rush of people descended on the highway at once, which led to a temporary traffic jam.”
Highway Police and travellers said that a lengthy traffic jam had stretched from Bhogra to Chandra on the Dhaka-Tangail Highway and from Chandra towards Tangail to Sutrapur in Kaliakoir Upazila since Tuesday afternoon.
At the same time, traffic was nearly at a standstill from Chandra to Jirani Bazar on the Nabinagar Road.
Along the 10-12km stretch from Bhogra, Board Bazar, Chandana Chowrasta, Salna, Bhabanipur and Maona on the Dhaka-Mymensingh highway, traffic was moving intermittently.
The long tailbacks and shortage of transport resulted in many travellers stranded by the side of the highway for hour after hour.
The congestion began to ease a bit on Wednesday morning when rain began pouring down around 7:30am, drenching many travellers.
The water accumulated at several places on the Dhaka-Mymensingh highway, slowing vehicles further. It led to stop-and-start movement for some time, but the rush of vehicles and traffic congestion began to ease as the day wore on.
Shafiqul Islam and his family had left Dhaka's Mohammadpur on their way to his village home in Bogura by bus at 12:30am on Wednesday.
As of 7am, they had only reached Chandra. He said, "For 10 years, I have been going home with my family by bus two days before Eid. However, I have never seen such mismanagement as on Tuesday. The traffic congestion intensified from the Bypass area. Now, it seems that cars are not moving at Chandra. Thousands of people are suffering on the road."
Still, he said: “Despite the thousands of hardships, the joy of going home is a unique thing.”
Aynal Hossain, a passenger travelling from Dhaka’s Abdullahpur to Panchagarh, said: “The car started slowing down soon after I boarded at night. It took 10 hours to travel 10km on the eastern side of Chandra on the Dhaka-Tangail Highway. I reached Konabari around 8:30am after many stops and starts.”
Hundreds of hopeful passengers were seen waiting for transport in some areas including Chandra, Safipur, and Palli Bidyut around 11am. Many boarded were soaked by the rain as they travelled in open top trucks and pickups.
Akram Hossain, a resident of Bhogra in Gazipur city, was headed to his village home in Rangpur Sadar.
He said, “I left home on Tuesday afternoon with my wife and children. But after waiting for a few hours at the Bhogra Bypass Peyarabagan Bus Stand, we had to return home without a seat on the bus.
“The next day, Wednesday morning, we set off again. I thought that since we were going the day before Eid, there would be less difficulty. But today is the same. In fact, it’s worse.”
Stating that the shortage of bus seats has added to the suffering caused by the rain, he said: “I was forced to climb up the ladder and get on a truck. Luckily, the truck had a tarpaulin. Otherwise, the Eid journey would have started with us drenched by the rain.”
Police official Saugatul said, “The suffering of people heading home has increased due to the rain. However, we are trying our best to alleviate the suffering of the people. Hopefully, the situation on the road will return to normal by noon.”
