Where is the special bus service in the special lane?
The Bus Rapid Transit project from Gazipur to the airport has not seen visible success as yet. It is said that although 10 buses of Bangladesh Road Transport Corporation had been inaugurated from Shibbari in Gazipur on December 15. At that time Senior Secretary of the Road Transport and Highways Department Md. Ehsanul Haque said that so far 98 percent work has been completed. Also said, the rest will be finished in June even after the movement of buses starts.
After taking up the BRT project in 2011, then Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader, secretary of the ministry and project officials repeatedly went to the construction site assuring them about the solution to problems. They declared the launching date several times. But they did not change the scenario. Then, Dhaka Bus Rapid Transit Company Limited or DBRTCL was initiated to operate the special buses. They declared that they would launch a specialized bus service named the Dhaka Line along the Airport-Gazipur BRT route.
But even after calling for tenders to buy 137 air-conditioned buses, they failed to do so. Family members of the former Bridge Minister have been alleged of their very close involvement in a bidding company in this Tk 500 crore project. After the cancellation of the tender for a couple of times due to different criticisms, it’s still underway by getting approval from the BRT Board. After its approval, then also it will require more time due to the no objection certificate for bringing those buses.
DBRTCL Managing Director Moniruzzaman told our time in this regard, “The tender process is over. A work order will be given if the contractor gets a no objection certificate. Import of buses is possible thereafter.”
It is learned that the BRT project was taken up in 2011. A target was set to launch big modern buses within four years. It was told that 20,000 passengers could travel per hour through the BRT. The buses would not be stuck in traffic jams, signals or any other obstacles. The initial cost of this project was estimated at Tk 2,398 crore. After three rounds of revisions, the project cost has reached Tk 4,268 crore. Of these, six people have died in accidents including girder crushes. This jam has inconvenienced millions of people to a great extent.
In 2012, the Bangladesh government sanctioned this project with a soft loan from the French government, with 137 diesel buses for Bangladesh’s BRT-6 line, Dhaka-Gazipur. Since the beginning of the bus service within this project, one could travel in an AC bus with no obstruction, just as on an elevated expressway. It would go a long way toward easing the traffic congestion of Dhaka city. BRT authorities called for tenders to procure AC diesel buses on January 14, 2023. The tender was scrapped as there was a conflict between the then Road Minister-Secretary and Sheikh Selim. With the government and lender AFD approval, the authorities called for a second tender on June 10 last year. A Chinese company was selected as technically and financially lowest bidder. The project authority and the lender AFD advised issuing the work order to them to purchase the buses at this price.
Meanwhile, the High Court has given its decision after hearing two separate writs regarding the tender for purchasing the buses. The rule absolute filed in the context of the writ filed by Dhaka Bus Rapid Transit Company Limited and the other filed by the Chinese company Zhong Tong Bus Holding Company Limited was rejected. Afterwards, an appeal was filed, but the company officials said there is no legal problem regarding this issue as of now.
But an official of the Ministry opined, even after the existence of BRTC, it is worthwhile considering how illogical to form a company to run some buses on a route. Because the company will need 24 permanent man powers including MD. Other than this, temporary people need to be recruited to carry on the work. The company is thus also being debated to turn into a loss-making institution. Initially, BRTC started with 10 buses. Now, its number is 12. But the desired service is not possible to be provided with BRTC buses. Therefore, many people are of the opinion that it is appropriate to introduce special buses quickly.
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