Increase Tra Fic Congestion & Private Car(1)

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Increase of Traffic Congestion and Private Cars in Dhaka through Planning against

Public Interest: A SolutionSaifuddin Ahmed, Maruf Rahman

Traffic congestion in cities is a global

problem, and has been addressed mainly intwo different ways: by creating more space

and infrastructure for cars while banningother vehicles, and by reducing the spaceand infrastructure for cars while improving

the situation for walking, cycling and

public transit. The former approach has

been shown to lead to great expense, morepollution, and increased congestion, while

the latter approach has succeeded in

resolved three wherever it has been

implemented. In Dhaka, many studies,plans and projects have been undertaken

costing crores of taka to reduce thecongestion level, while ignoring

international experience in terms both of

what works and what doesn't. If the present

condition is considered to be the outcomeof projects taken in the recent past, the

effectiveness of those previous projects

faces serious question.

Several steps have been undertaken toreduce traffic congestion in Dhaka city,such as imposing restriction on the

entrance of trucks in Dhaka during

daytime, banning of cycle rickshaws1

indifferent roads, changing the time table of

the trains, changing the lanes of public

transport, construction of foot over bridges

rather than zebra crossings, construction offlyovers, and so on. In addition, a traffic

signal system was introduced, investing a

huge amount of money. Though buses,trucks, rickshaws, trains and pedestrians

have all been blamed for the congestion in

Dhaka, after imposing restrictions on themthe congestion level did not reduce. Despite

1 Throughout this paper, rickshaw refers to cycle

rickshaws.

the lack of success to date, some private

organizations are keenly interested tointroduce new projects without considering

their likely effects. In this regard it isimportant to understand the reasons forongoing congestion and the mechanisms

likely to reduce it before undertaking new

projects in the transport sector.

In the recent past, virtually all modes except

private cars have been identified as the main

reason for congestion, with a particular focus

on the rickshaw. Meanwhile, projects havebeen undertaken and are under consideration

to, for example, provide more parking spacesand construct flyovers and an underground

metro so that cars can move around freely on

the roads. Only private cars have been

virtually exempt from measures to reducecongestion.

Figure 1: Dominance of private cars onthe road

Yet it is clear that private cars are in fact the

main source of congestion in most of Dhaka's

roads, despite accounting for only a minorpercentage of trips. Viewed as the mode of

choice of the powerful, the role of cars inincreasing congestion has been ignored until

recently, and to date no bold steps have yet


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been taken to control their movement and

thus improve the situation for other, more

efficient modes.

According to BRTA, every year around

37,000 cars are added to Dhaka's roads, of

which 80% are private cars.

Meanwhile, imposing restrictions on public

modes (public transit, walking, bicycles,rickshaws) is causing serious obstacles for

the movement of the 90% of the people of

the city who do not travel by car. Whileonly a small minority of Dhaka residents

own a car, actions to benefit this minority

mean that the majority is deprived of

adequate transport facilities. To date noproper steps have been taken to control the

growth of car use.

While cars are at the root of the problem in

terms of vehicle use, more efficient modes

of transport can only function in a city thatis appropriately designed to ease and

prioritize short distance travel and reduce

travel demand. To reduce congestion andneeded services must be reduced. In this

regard all types of facilities like educationalinstitutions, hospitals, bazaars, residential

areas, workplaces, and recreationalfacilities should be distributed throughout

the city to reduce travel demand. If thefacilities can be distributed all over the city,

most travel could be of short distance,

easily covered by foot, bicycle or rickshaw.

Figure 2: Pedestrian-friendly walkingenvironment

Figure 3: Use of bicycle on the road

To alleviate congestion and enable short-

distance travel, suitable modes should beprioritized during the planning stage.

Walking, cycling and rickshaws are

considered to be the most suitable modes for

distances up to five kilometers. While priorityshould be given to short-distance travel,

longer distance travel must also be

accommodated, though not prioritized to thesame extent. It is thus necessary to improve

the public transport system (bus and rail), as

the only efficient ways, in terms of space andfuel, to move people long distances. To

achieve these positive effects, coordination

between city authorities and transportplanners should be ensured.

Figure 4: Improved public transport indeveloped countries

Finally, it must be widely acknowledged that

for moving around the city, private cars are

the most inefficient vehicles. In the longterm, the congestion level can be managed

only if the growth of private cars as well as

the infrastructure encouraging the growth of

private cars can be controlled.


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The activities encouraging people to be

dependent on private cars can be

summarized as follows:

1. Reduction in the facilities of public

transport, fuel-free vehicles (bicycles,

rickshaws) and pedestrians.

1.1 Reducing the space for buses and

rickshaws in the street: Recently it has beendecided that cars, jeeps, motorized three

wheelers and taxicabs will run on the right

hand side of the roads (Sheratonintersection to Banglamotor, Farmgate,

Mohakhali flyover and Progoti Shoroni via

Abdullahpur) but cars, jeeps etc. can use

the left hand side lane also. As a result theaverage speed of the public transport has

reduced which encourages people to useprivate cars.

1.2 Reducing the number of routes of intra-

city buses: At present one cannot moveefficiently from one part of the city to the

other by bus. Because of the absence of a

quality transport system, people are usingprivate cars, motorized three wheelers and

taxicabs more frequently. In order toprioritize public service it is necessary to

prioritize public transit, for instance byproviding buses with dedicated lanes.

Prioritizing public transit would not onlyreduce congestion but also reduce fuel

dependency, pollution and transportation

costs. On the bright side, quality busservice has emerged in some parts of the

city.

If the government takes proper initiatives

to emphasize bus service, it would be easier

to improve the quality of the service. Butrather than improve bus service, thegovernment has instead decided,

supposedly to reduce congestion, to reduce

the number of routes from 129 to 40.Because of this decision, in many parts of

the city bus services will be closed, leaving

people no option but to use more spaceinefficient modes which simply increase

congestion. It is necessary to preserve the

benefits of the existing bus service while

also taking proper steps so that people can

have access to the service from all parts of

the city. Otherwise the number of private cars

will continue to increase.

1.3 To control the access of inter-city buses

into the city: If restriction is imposed on the

public, transport, congestion as well aspeople's sufferings will increase. Recently it

has been decided that inter-city buses wouldnot be permitted to enter into the city. As a

result, passengers have to go to the periphery

of the city to access these services, utilizingsmaller vehicles to travel between the bus

terminals and their destination in the city.

Whereas a bus can easily carry 50 persons,

those passengers if forced to take smallvehicles to get into the city will use at least

25 vehicles. These kinds of steps are thuslikely to increase the use of private cars,which will require more road space. At the

same time it will increase fuel use, transport

cost, and environmental pollution.

1.4 Changing the time table of trains: A train

can carry 1,000 to 1,500 people at a time. Butit was decided to restrict the arrival and

departure of trains from 8 am to 9:30 am and4 pm to 6 pm in Dhaka. As a result of this

decision, many people will face problems fortheir travel. Though waiting time of the

vehicles in the railway crossing wasaddressed as the indicator of congestion, such

a policy ignores the fact that those on trains

are also passengers, who are themselvesbeing inconvenienced by the scheduling

change. The main cause of long queues at rail

crossings is not trains, but rather theuncontrolled increase of private cars in the

past few years. It is private cars that should

be restricted, not trains.

1.5 Banning of rickshaws in different roads:

Because of the banning of rickshaws in

different streets of the city, transport cost andthe suffering of the people increased to a

great extent. Now private cars are dominating

those roads carrying few people as thepassenger capacity of rickshaws is 2.5 times

more than that of private cars.


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0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Ligh4

wheel

Tru

cks

Bu

ses

Minibu

ses

M

otor

R

icks

C

ycle

R

icks

2wheel

Vehicle type

Roadspaceoccupiedin%

2000

2005

Figure 5: Comparative scenario ofMirpur road after banning therickshaws

Buses can easily overtake rickshaws butprivate cars do not let the buses overtake

them. As a result, the average speed of

buses has reduced and congestion is

increasing. Despite the problems createdand lack of positive result, government

continues to impose restrictions on the

movement of rickshaws in many streets ofthe city. Recently it has been proposed to

ban the movement of rickshaws in some

other roads: from Kuril to Saidabad viaBishwaroad and from Kakrail to Saidabad

via Rajarbag Police Hospital and Doinik

Bangla intersection. These steps can onlyincrease the market demand of private cars

and sufferings of the general people.

If the movement of any type of vehicles is

banned, it ultimately increases the number

of other vehicles in the road as people shift

from the banned mode to other availablemodes. To meet the travel demand of the

people who previously traveled by

rickshaws, public buses as well as manysmall vehicles (private cars, taxicabs etc)

come into use. After the rickshaw ban in

Mirpur Road it has been seen that 60% ofroad space has gone under the control of

private cars, many of which are parked on

the main road where rickshaws used to

travel. In this way more ingredients ofcongestion are added in the transport

system because of the introduction of

smaller vehicles in the road. This kind ofsituation leads to traffic congestion, fuel

dependency and environmental pollution.

1.6 Obstacles for pedestrian movement: In

many places people are forced to use foot

over bridges for road crossings. Such bridges

increase trip time and inconvenience for allpedestrians, and can create serious obstacles

for many groups including small children, the

disabled, the sick, and those carrying children

or heavy items.

Figure 6: Inconvenience of thepedestrians in using foot over bridge

Not long ago, zebra crossings were present in

most of the streets of the city but those werelater destroyed. Now more over bridges are

constructed, and administrative power is

exercised to force people to use them. Suchinconvenience to pedestrians is obviously

only tolerated because of the perceived

benefits to car drivers. On the other hand,presently most of the footpaths are in bad

condition and sometimes they are used asparking places for private cars which affect

the free flow of pedestrians.

2. Other steps which are increasing the use of

private cars

2.1 Provision of parking facilities: In almostevery part of the city, road space, footpaths,

playgrounds, parks, empty lots and so on aresacrificed to provide parking space for privatecars at little or no charge.

Policies like incorporation of car parkingspace in buildings and construction of

separate parking facilities are ultimately

attracting more private cars. Moreover, car

parking facility has been made compulsory inthe Bangladesh National Building Code.

Recently in City Center building at


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Figure 7: Parking on Mirpur road

Motijheel, 10 floors were allocated to car

parking place to contain more than 500cars. According to DCC, more than 4,000

cars are parked in the Motijheel-Dilkusha

area daily. Unless the growth of car

ownership can be controlled and alternativetransport services can be developed, the

congestion problem cannot be solved by

increasing the parking facility.

2.2 Construction of flyover and elevated

expressway: To reduce the congestion ofDhaka, two flyovers have been constructed

in Mohakhali and Khilgaon. But the prime

objectives of the project could not beachieved as the congestion problem has

become more severe in the areas after theinauguration of the flyovers. Private cars

are the major users of the flyovers. Themore facilities encouraging private cars areimplemented, the more the congestion level

will increase. Though because of faulty

design, the construction work of Gulistan-

Jatrabari flyover is postponed, it is a matterof concern that Dhaka Strategic Transport

Plan suggested to construct a 29 km

elevated road. It must be remembered that

20% of road space is destroyed because ofthe construction of elevated expressways

and flyovers. The reduction in road spacethus creates more congestion.

Many cities in the world have constructed

multi-level elevated expressways, but stillcould not reduce their congestion level. As

a result they stated to demolish them.

Already Seoul in South Korea, Boston inthe USA, and Tokyo in Japan have

demolished elevated expressways and Canada

has postponed the construction work of an

elevated expressway in Toronto.

In the developed countries, the use of private

cars is strictly controlled and more emphasis

is given to public transport, walking and

cycling. The Mayor of Bogot, capital ofColombia, said that a city could be destroyedby two ways: by an atom bomb or by

constructing an elevated expressway. He has

created an example famous throughout theworld by developing an efficient urban

transport system relying not on elevated

expressways, flyovers or wide roads, but on

bus rapid transit complemented by excellentfacilities for pedestrians, bicycles and

rickshaws.

Figure 8: The scenario before and afterdemolishing an elevated expressway inSeoul, South Korea

It is necessary to step aside from the idea of

ever-increasing road construction and insteadtake steps to implement a comprehensive plan

by giving more emphasis to public transport,

walking, rickshaws, and cycling whileactively discouraging the use of private cars.

2.3 Easy credit support to own a private car:The commercial banks are now providing

100% credit facility to buy a private car.


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They are thus encouraging the common

people to own a car, which is one of the

main causes behind the growth of private

cars. There should be proper regulation tocontrol the credit support to own a car and

guide the banks to invest in productive

sectors instead.

2.4 Easy licensing: Though licensing of

public transport and rickshaws are keptunder control, there is virtually no

restriction imposed on the licensing of

private cars. According to BRTA, everydaythey give 25 licenses to drivers. Besides the

legal cars, thousands of illegal vehicle

operate on the city's roads. According to

Daily Somokal, everyday around 100 newand old vehicles are added to the

transportation system of the city, which is amatter of great concern.

All around the world, the private car is one

of the main reasons for congestion in theurban transport system. As a result, many

countries are placing restrictions on the use

of private cars and promoting moreefficient modes. Such steps are also needed

to handle the fuel crisis and environmentalpollution. To date, efforts to address traffic

congestion in Dhaka have failed becauseplanners were unwilling to acknowledge

the main cause.

The steps necessary to control the

congestion level in the city are described asfollows:

1. Control the use of private cars:

Determine the parking charge on anhourly basis, or fractions thereof in

busy parts of the city, consideringthe location of parking place as wellas the parking time to determine a

fair market price for parking.

Impose congestion charge onprivate vehicles in the busy streets

of the city.

Control the licensing of privatecars.

Emphasize public transport foroffices and educational institutions.

2. Facilitate public transport, fuel-free

vehicles and pedestrians:

Properly schedule trains, consideringthe demand and benefits of people.

Facilitate the inter city buses to pickup passengers inside the city.

Determine the routes in such a waythat people can travel easily by busthroughout the city.

Allocate sufficient space for rickshawtravel throughout the city given the

demand for and many benefits of this

mode.

Create separate lanes for cyclingabove the level of the main street,

using the Copenhagen model.

Establish zebra crossing facilities forroad crossings and maintain footpaths

in good condition; completelydisallow all car parking on footpaths.

References:

The Daily Ittefaq, 16th April 2008 The Daily Jaijaidin, 1st April 2008 The Daily Destiny, 17th April 2008 The Daily Naya Diganta, 20th

April 2008 Rickshaw in the Transport System

of Dhaka, Shakil Bin Kashem, TheDaily Dinkal, 7th March 2008 Controlling Congestion and

Means to Improve the TransportSystem, Dr. Mahbubul Bari, TheDaily Dinkal, 12th March 2008

http://www.metro.seoul.kr/kor2000/chungaehome/en/seoul/main.htm

accessed on 8th April 2008

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