37pc highways, roads in bad shape

The delay in the formation of road maintenance fund, initiated four years ago, leaves about 37 per cent of national and regional highways and important district-level roads without repairs. 
These dilapidated highways and roads with numerous potholes are a major reason behind frequent road accidents, road safety experts have said, expressing their concern. 
The fund was to be formed as per the Road Maintenance Fund Board Act enacted in 2013, but it is yet to be formed as the related rules are not prepared yet, Roads and Highways Department officials say. 
According to the Roads and Highways Department’s latest maintenance and rehabilitation needs report, about 37 per cent of its national and regional highways and zila roads are in a dilapidated condition.
The RHD prepared the report, based on a survey conducted in 2016 (between February and May), on 16,620.80 kilometre highways and roads out of its total 21,302 kilometre roads. 
RHD chief engineer Ebne Alam Hasan told New Age that the needs report 2016 was the latest report on RHD’s road network and it shows a big portion of its roads in a poor condition. 
He blamed insufficient budgets because of the existing condition of the highways and roads. 
‘So there is always a backlog in maintenance. Year after year, we repair a portion of the roads with the small budget we get for it,’ he said. 
The road maintenance fund was not formed as the sources of funds were not yet fixed, he elaborated.
The report shows that out of the sample 3,465.59 kilometre roads or 20.85 per cent are in poor, 1,900.11 kilometre or 11.43 per cent in bad and 840.81 kilometre or 5.06 per cent are in very bad condition.
Road transport experts fear that if the government does not form the fund immediately, maintenance budget will become a black hole in future. 
Enacted on July 22, 2013, the law says that a Road Maintenance Fund Board will be set up immediately after it comes into force and the board will have a fund for repairing, renovating and maintaining RHD’s roads and highways and collect money for the fund and direct other relevant activities. 
As per the law, the fund will get money from grants to be provided by the government and foreign governments and donor agencies.
But, the government is yet to frame the rules, which the law requires, for generating other funding sources like collection of taxes, levies, fees and charges.
The RHD had estimated Tk 12,475.31 crore for overall maintenance of the roads in the current 2016-17 fiscals while the budget allocation for the ministry’s road maintenance and repairs is Tk 1,555.64 crore. 
Out of RHD’s overall maintenance budget, Tk 3,317.98 crore is earmarked for backlog maintenance.
When contacted, RHD superintending engineer (maintenance circle) Saiful Alam said that currently they were working on the rules.
The board would be formed immediately once the rules were framed, he hoped. 
RHD has all national and regional highways under it while it is also responsible for maintaining important district-level roads. 
Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology’s civil engineering department professor Shamsul Hoque told New Age that road fund was essential for timely repair of the bituminous roads and their regular maintenance. 
He suggested that a portion of Bangladesh Road Transport Authority’s income should go directly to the RHD for maintaining roads. 
‘There should be no lack in the maintenance budget. If roads are not repaired in time, it will need rehabilitation, which will cost more,’ he observed. 
He warned that if the situation went like this, maintenance budget would become a black hole for the government and stressed immediate formation of the road fund. 
BUET’s Accident Research Institute’s lecturer Shahnewaz Hasanat-E-Rabbi said poor condition of highways or roads increases the probability of accidents as potholes hampers the balance of a vehicle. 
‘Wheels of overloaded trucks and covered vans easily become imbalanced on dilapidated roads and overturn easily,’ he pointed out.

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