Metro rail passengers suffering due to ticket crisis

Passengers of metrorail, the easiest and most popular mode of transportation in Dhaka, have to stand in line for hours to get the tickets. On the one hand, it is wasting time and on the other hand, the passengers are facing problems in their daily work.

According to passengers and metro rail authorities, the crisis of single ticket (one-way ticket) is the main problem behind the untold sufferings of passengers.

Metrorail's Uttara Center, Mirpur 10, Kawran Bazar, Secretariat and Motijheel stations are experiencing problems almost every day. At times, the machine shuts down during punching after standing in line for a long time.

Dhaka Mass Transit Company Limited (DMTCL) authorities and passengers blame each other for the crisis. DMTCL says that the suffering is increasing due to the ignorance of the passengers while the passengers claim that the crisis is caused by the negligence of DMTCL.

During spot visits at different stations, it has been found that despite the heavy rush of passengers, at least one of the 4 to 6 punch machines running in each station is either broken or out of order.

Passengers often have to pay extra fines for the complexity of the punch machine. Single ticket passengers do not deposit tickets due to this complication. Metro rail staff or ansar personnel have been seen collecting tickets by hand at several stations including Kawran Bazar due to the complications of the punch machine.

Karim Sheikh, a resident of Mirpur, said, "My office is in the Motijheel area. I used to leave home at 7am in the morning and reach the office at 9am. But recently, since the introduction of metro rail, I could go to work on time if I left home 40 minutes before the start of the office. But due to the shortage of tickets, more than an hour is spent in the line at the station. As a result, I have to leave home for the office 40 or 45 minutes earlier. The authorities should resolve this problem quickly.”

In this regard, a metro rail official said, “Passengers with single tickets have specific gates to enter or exit the station. This gate is called Automated Fare Collection (AFC). Each gate is open for a certain period of time to avoid shock to the ticket punched passenger. At this time, many passengers leave with other passengers without punching the ticket. Due to this reason, many tickets are lost.”

He hoped that the current government will monitor all the issues and solve all the problems quickly.

Communication expert and professor of Bangladesh University of Engineering Technology (BUET) Md Shamsul Haque said, “It is true that when passengers pass through the automated gate with a single metro rail ticket at the end of their journey, the gate remains open for a certain period due to procedural reasons. Using this opportunity, the next passenger can leave. Due to broken automated gates, some passengers may leave without submitting their tickets due to rush hour. Metro rail authorities should check daily how many passengers have taken single tickets and how many tickets have been deposited.”

DMTCL Managing Director Mohammad Abdur Rauf said, “Since the inception of the metro rail, around two lakh single tickets have been lost from the station. We are short of manpower. We have to suffer a lot if there is too much pressure from passengers. Many passengers take advantage of the AFC gate being open for some time and leave without depositing the ticket. Due to the lack of manpower, we cannot monitor properly all the time.”

Monitoring will be stepped up so that not a single card goes out, he assured.