Commuters suffer as transport strike rolls into second day

With buses off the streets of Dhaka and the rest of the country, commuters appear trapped in a harrowing situation.

On the first day of the nationwide transport strike on Tuesday, some buses were available on the streets of Dhaka.

On Wednesday, the second day of the strike, no buses could be seen. Only auto-rickshaws and tempos were seen commuting with passengers.

Office-goers and students, rather anybody out on the streets for some work, faced a harrowing time finding a transport to reach their destinations.

Some say in places like Jatrabarhi, even private vehicles  were obstructed from moving around.

Angry commuters were, however, against any settlement with the transport workers who were holding them hostage.

They opposed any settlement with the transport workers accepting

People began walking in the street after only a few buses emerged from the Kalyanpur BRTC Depot. ‘Laguna vehicles’ overloaded with passengers were seen trying to meet the need for transportation.

Bank worker Kazi Rafiqul Alam boarded a rickshaw van from Kalyanpur to Mohakhali to commute from his home in Darus Salam to his office at the airport intersection. He will try to ‘find some way’ to reach his office once he arrived in Mohakhali.

“The bosses won’t understand,” he told bdnews24.com. “We will be scolded if we do not arrive on time. It was very difficult to reach home yesterday too.”

“The government should stand firm,” said another passenger affected by the strike. “The court’s actions were legal. If they compromise with them, other groups will be encouraged to act illegally. Our drivers are reckless. Without proper punishment these accidents will continue.”

Ali Hossain, who works at an NGO, left for Mohakhali on a rickshaw van after failing to find a bus.

“If you give them an inch they will always try to take a mile,” he said. “They will try to do whatever they want. That cannot be allowed. Things cannot continue this way. The government should take constructive action.”

Shohag Sarkar, who works at an international technology company, failed to find transport after a long wait.

“The government must be strict so that others cannot cause such suffering again,” he said.

Mohammad Lincoln is a rickshaw van driver who took passengers who failed to find a bus from Kalyanpur to Mohakhali on Tuesday. He would take eight passengers at a time for a total of Tk 400.

“I am taking a higher fare,” he told bdnews24.com. “But pulling a rickshaw van is hard work, but at least people can get to where they’re going.”

Abdullah Sarkar, an NGO worker, paid Tk 160 to travel from Malibagh to Mohakhali.

“Rickshaw pullers and CNG drivers are scalping us at will,” he said.