Homebound travellers suffer on Jamuna Bridge gridlock, Tk 3.82 crore toll collected

Despite the heavy rush of Eid travel, 56,239 vehicles crossed the Jamuna Bridge in the last 24 hours, generating approximately Tk 3.82 crore in tolls. However, to manage the overwhelming traffic, authorities controlled Dhaka-bound vehicles for the second consecutive day, causing long tailbacks and suffering for homebound travellers on the west side of the bridge.

Jamuna Bridge Maintenance and Operation Division Executive Engineer Syed Riaz Uddin confirmed the information on Wednesday, May 27. Toll collection on the Dhaka-bound lane was temporarily suspended before noon at the west end toll plaza to ease traffic flow for northbound vehicles.

As a result, long queues of Dhaka-bound vehicles formed on the west side, and the situation quickly became complicated.

Jamuna Bridge West Police Station OC Md Amirul Islam said the toll plaza on the west side was closed before noon to manage the heavy northbound traffic. It was reopened after noon, but by then, a major gridlock had already formed for Dhaka-bound vehicles near Sayedabad. Even after toll collection resumed, both Dhaka-bound and northbound lanes remained congested.

Women, children and elderly passengers suffered the most, taking hours to cover just a few kilometres.

Sirajganj district police, traffic division and highway police were seen working on the highway to keep the situation under control. Around 4:00 pm, Sirajganj district police's verified Facebook page released drone footage of the traffic congestion.