Passengers cross highway with ladders, charged Tk5

Staff Reporter :
People are resorting to using ladders leaned over the road divider to cross the highway, with passengers being charged five taka for this service. Such scenes unfolded in front of the office of the Roads and Public Paths Directorate at Shimrail intersection on the Dhaka-Chittagong highway on a Sunday afternoon. A video capturing these events has circulated on the social media platform Facebook.
According to sources, in the middle of last year, long-distance vehicles gained direct access to Dhaka, prompting the division of the four-lane Dhaka-bound road into two lanes from Kanchpur Bridge in Siddhirganj to the Kuwait Plaza area, with a high divider. Additionally, two more lanes were reserved for regional traffic.
Previously, a gate remained open in front of the SOZ office to facilitate the movement of passengers from the long-distance lane to the regional lane. Long-distance vehicles used to drop passengers at Shimrail intersection. However, for the past two months, this gate has been closed by the SOZ authorities. Nonetheless, long-distance vehicles continue to drop passengers at this location.
Over the past two months, passengers have been risking their lives crossing the road. Some unscrupulous transport workers are exploiting this situation by using ladders on both sides of the divider to ferry passengers across in exchange for money.
When questioned, TI AKM Sharfuddin of the Shimrail camp of Kanchpur highway police station stated, “The highway police visited the spot but did not find anyone. We are investigating who is involved in these activities, and legal action will be taken against them.”
Shahana Ferdous, executive engineer of the Narayanganj Roads and Public Paths Department (SOZ), mentioned that passengers had been placed on ladders in this manner on numerous occasions before. Subsequently, the ladders were confiscated with the assistance of the Ansar. The matter has been discussed with the highway police.