Photo: TDM
Shariatpur Municipal Bus Terminal is causing great inconvenience to passengers as the terminal has not been expanded despite an increase in traffic. With only 65 bus parking facilities, the bus terminal is currently being used by around 300 buses. The lack of space has resulted in over 200 buses being parked on the road, causing severe traffic jams in the area along with the entrance of the city. The situation has worsened after the launch of Padma Bridge as additional traffic pressure has increased manifold.
The Shariatpur District Bus Minibus Owners Association stated that the bus terminal was built in 1998 for internal route buses on only 1 acre of land in Palang Mouja of the district city. However, the traffic pressure has increased several times since then, and the perimeter of the bus stand has not been expanded. Although the number of buses has increased several times, no initiative has been taken to expand the bus terminal. As a result, drivers and workers are forced to park more than two hundred passenger buses from different destinations on the entrance road of the city.
Shahida Begum, a passenger waiting at the bus stand to go to Dhaka, expressed dissatisfaction with the lack of restrooms and washrooms in the old dilapidated bus stand. Due to the small size of the terminal, most of the buses are parked on the road, creating severe traffic jams.
The president of the Shariatpur Bus Owners Association, Farooq Ahmed Talukder, said that he deeded 1 acre of land in his name for the construction of the municipal bus terminal in 1998 when only buses were plying within the district. Currently, more than 300 buses ply from the district on different routes of the country, and the bus space is limited in the small bus terminal. The matter has been reported to the municipality.
The Shariatpur Municipality Mayor, Parvez Rahman, acknowledged the issue and stated that an initiative has been taken to expand the bus stand by acquiring another 1 acre of land through a new project in December. However, this may not solve the problem as the current expansion plan only provides one more acre of land, which may not be enough to accommodate the growing number of buses.
Shariatpur Municipal Bus Terminal has become a big problem for passengers due to its small size and lack of space. The increased traffic and lack of expansion have resulted in severe traffic jams and inconvenience for city dwellers. The authorities need to take immediate measures to address the issue and expand the bus terminal to accommodate the growing number of buses.
TDM/MI
