Road safety directives fall on deaf ears

Road safety directives given at different times by the High Court, administration, law enforcement agencies and even by prime minister Sheikh Hasina saw hardly any implementation because of some transport leaders manipulating their hold on the sector, road safety experts have alleged. 
People have their back against the wall because of this total lack of rule on the road, where deaths in road accidents, mainly due to reckless driving by untrained and illegal drivers, have become a daily phenomenon.
So, students, mostly from schools and colleges, took to the streets across the country for the sixth consecutive day on Friday, demanding trial in the killing of two of their fellows in Kurmitola bus accident and protesting at anarchy in the road transport sector. 
The experts doubt that the directives will ever be implemented as they were nothing new and were already the mandated functions of Bangladesh Road Transport Authority and law enforcing agencies. 
Because of the evil manipulation of some transport sector leaders, they say, a nexus has developed among government officials and transport operators allowing movement of unfit vehicles, reckless and unskilled drivers, culture of impunity and corruption. 
Now, shipping minister Shajahan Khan is executive president of Bangladesh Road Transport Workers’ Federation while rural development and cooperatives Mashiur Rahman Ranga is executive president of Bangladesh Road Transport Owners’ Association. 
Transparency International Bangladesh on Thursday demanded removal of Shajahan Khan and Mashiur Rahman Ranga from the cabinet saying that they cannot be ministers as their other 
roles were in direct conflict with such responsibilities.
A Supreme Court lawyer in a legal notice on Thursday asked shipping minister Shajahan Khan to explain in 24 hours under what authority he was holding the post of the federation’s executive president.
The lawyer said Shajahan became the president violating the constitution and breaching the oath of office he took as a minister.
Without bringing the authorities concerned and traffic rule violators under accountability, anarchy on road transport sector will continue, they think. 
According to the Bangladesh Police data, 2,463 people were killed in road accidents in 2016, 2,513 were killed in 2017 and in six months of the ongoing year, 1,382 were killed in road accidents across the country.
Mostly recently, two Shaheed Ramiz Uddin Cantonment College students were killed and 12 injured at Kurmitola in the capital by two racing buses on July 29 while the drivers didn’t have licence. 
Shajahan Khan is facing huge criticism as he lightly reacted to the accident. 
In August 2011, a few days after filmmaker Tareque Masud and cinematographer Mishuk Munier died as a bus rammed into their microbus in Manikganj, he also said that anyone able to recognise ‘cows and goats on the road’ could hold a driving licence.
The prime minister on June 25 gave directives to ensure drivers’ rest every five hours, alternative drivers for long distance transports, training facilities for drives and their assistants, use of seatbelts while travelling and follow traffic signals. 
These directives are already mentioned in Motor Vehicles Ordinance, 1983, Bangladesh Labour Act, 2009 and traffic laws and HC, different ministries and Dhaka Metropolitan Police already gave same directives earlier. 
The HC’s directive to the road transport ministry and the police issued on August 3, 2015 to keep unfit motor vehicles off the roads across the country was never enforced.
Home affairs ministry in 2010 in a directive put a ban on unregistered battery-run three-wheelers ‘easy bikes’.
Since August 1, 2015 road transport and bridges ministry imposed a ban on three-wheeler and non-motorised vehicles on 22 national highways.
RTB minister Obaidul Quader recently said recently that illegal three-wheelers again came back on highways, which mostly contributed to road accidents.
On March 5, 2012, the HC asked the authorities not to allow motorcycle riding or driving cars on footpaths while DMP rules barred motorcycle running without helmets and two or more co-riders.
On October 23, 2014 the HC served show cause notices on the government and the police to explain why they should not be asked to enforce traffic rules strictly to prevent VIPs and VVIPs from wrong lane driving.
The HC on September 13, 2015 asked the government and police to take necessary measures to stop illegal parking and use of hydraulic horns and prevent sound pollution in the capital.
Private vehicles have continued to use hooters, hydraulic horns and beacon lights defying a DMP ban imposed in May 2016.
The home ministry issued a notification on May 6, 2014 prohibiting the tainted glasses, which was later relaxed for vehicles with inbuilt tainted glasses. 
Besides, the National Road Safety Council was established in 1995 which gave 52 major recommendations in 2011 including appointment letter and fixed work hours for workers, no leasing out of public transports, awareness of traffic rules, strict maintenance of driving licence and fitness certificate procedures, training for drivers and strict implementation of traffic rules.
BRTWF general secretary Osman Ali claimed that the owners were not implementing the directives given by the primer at all. 
‘The owners even don’t pay us wages,’ he added after coming out from a press briefing in the secretariat on Wednesday.
Right beside him, state minister for state minister Mashiur Rahman Ranga was standing. 
The state minister claimed that in Bangladesh no long route journey exceed five hours while due to rundown roads it was taking more time during journey on Chittagong and Rangpur routes. 
BRTOA secretary general Khandakar Enayet Ullah earlier told New Age that they needed at least 10 lakh new drivers if they wanted to implement the directive on keeping alternative drivers for long-route transports.
BRTA statistics shows that against about 35 lakh registered vehicles 19 lakh people have driving licences. 
NRSC member professor Md Shamsul Hoque expressed concern that the recent directives from the primer would only encourage the traffic rules violators more. 
‘If the violators are asked in a soft tone to follow the existing rules, it will give them the message that they will not be brought under accountability for their misdeeds,’ the professor noted. 
Former chairman of BRTA Md Ayubur Rahman Khan said most of the people of the country were not law abiding while the authorities were not implementing the laws strictly. 
‘But everything has to be implemented in a transparent way,’ he suggested. 
Home minister Asaduzzaman Khan on Wednesday in a press briefing said they were actively working to implement the directives of the prime minister for safe road. 
BRTA chairman Md Moshiur Rahman told New Age that they were regularly holding meeting with stakeholders to fix the ways to implement the PM directives. 

News Courtesy: www.newagebd.net