Traffic crawls on Gazipur Highway, transport fares double

Severe traffic congestion and fare hikes plagued the Dhaka-Mymensingh highway near Chandana Chowrasta in Gazipur on Thursday (June 5) as thousands of garment workers began their journey home ahead of Eid-ul-Azha.

From early morning, vehicles moving toward Mymensingh faced a significant slowdown, with long tailbacks forming in the area. Police say the rush of garment workers returning home after the last working day in many factories has created immense pressure on the highway.

According to the eyewitnesses, hundreds of passengers stranded with luggage in hand, struggling to find transport. Many complained that due to a shortage of available vehicles, transport operators were charging double the usual fare.

“The normal fare to Rajshahi is much less,” said Shamsur Rahman, a garment worker from TNZ Garments. “Today they are asking for Tk 2,500. I had to take a CNG to Chandra, hoping to find a bus from there.”

Passengers traveling to nearby districts also suffered. Shariat Hossain, traveling with his wife and child, said, “We’ve been waiting for over an hour to get a seat on a bus to Mymensingh. Now CNGs are charging Tk 500 per person, but still no one wants to go.”

Rasel Mia, another commuter from Uttara, shared his frustration: “I boarded a pickup truck as no buses were available. Even then, I haven’t been able to cross the Chandana intersection. I don’t know how much longer I’ll be stuck here.”

Traffic movement has been further disrupted by roadside shops and auto-rickshaws encroaching onto the road near Chandana intersection.

Toriqul Islam, the traffic inspector overseeing the area, acknowledged the problem. “The traffic is very slow, but it has not come to a complete halt. We are working to restore normal flow,” he said.

According to the Industrial Police, Gazipur is home to over 2,500 registered garment factories, most of which declared Thursday a holiday. With some factories already closed in the preceding days, Thursday saw the highest number of workers hitting the road, intensifying the congestion.