Sarwar Azam Manik, Cox’s Bazar
The Chattogram-Cox’s Bazar highway is increasingly becoming a death trap for tourists, with road accidents continuing to rise. A total of 225 accidents occurred on the Cox’s Bazar section of the highway from January to July this year, leaving 41 people dead and 121 injured.
According to those concerned, several factors are contributing to the rise in accidents, including encroachment on footpaths, the absence of road signs, unlicensed drivers, reckless driving, unfamiliarity of tourist vehicle drivers with the road, and winding sections of the highway.
There are eight accident-prone areas on the Cox’s Bazar section of the Chattogram-Cox’s Bazar highway, four of them in Chakaria. The major black spots include Baniaschhara, Baraitali, Fasiakhali and Medakchhapia in Chakaria; Panirchhara and the Rubber Garden area in Ramu; and Balukhali and Ukhia Bazar on the Cox’s Bazar-Teknaf highway.
Cox’s Bazar is Bangladesh’s only tourism district and attracts thousands of domestic and foreign tourists every day to its world’s longest sea beach. Most visitors travel by road. Although rail services have been introduced, the highway continues to carry a large volume of tourists and other passengers, while only a small number travel by air.
Despite being an important national highway, the Chattogram-Cox’s Bazar road has yet to be widened. Besides tourists, the road is heavily used by officials and employees of various development organisations working for the 1.5 million Rohingyas sheltered in Bangladesh, as well as those involved in the Matarbari deep-sea port, the Matarbari coal-fired power plant, the LNG terminal and the SPM project.
As a result, traffic pressure on the highway remains extremely high. Road users say several sections between Chattogram and Cox’s Bazar are in poor condition, while traffic congestion is a regular occurrence at various points.
Jasim Uddin Kishore, president of the Cox’s Bazar district branch of Nirapad Sarak Chai (NISCHA), said they organise awareness programmes every year and submit memoranda to the administration with various demands, but little has been done.
He said the highway had still not been widened despite the growing number of vehicles using it every day. Encroachment on footpaths, reckless driving, unlicensed drivers, the absence of road signs and winding sections of the road are contributing to frequent accidents, he added.
A.N.M. Helal Uddin, president of the Cox’s Bazar Citizens’ Forum, said the Chattogram-Cox’s Bazar highway was an important road, but work on upgrading it to four lanes had yet to begin despite the Prime Minister’s announcement.
He said most tourists travel on the highway and many drivers of tourist vehicles come from different parts of the country without sufficient experience of the narrow road. After travelling on wider roads up to Chattogram, they often struggle to control their vehicles when entering the narrower highway. Their unfamiliarity with the winding sections also frequently leads to accidents.
He said the highway was not receiving adequate attention despite the large number of tourism and development projects being undertaken in Cox’s Bazar. He believes the road should be upgraded to six lanes before further development projects are undertaken.
Abdullah Al Faruk, amir of Cox’s Bazar town Jamaat, said he was the first to take to the streets demanding that the Chattogram-Cox’s Bazar highway be upgraded to four lanes. He called for the work to be completed quickly.
Mohammad Shahinur Alam Khan, Additional DIG of the Highway Police Cumilla Region, said 225 road accidents occurred on the Cox’s Bazar section of the Chattogram-Cox’s Bazar highway between January and July this year, killing 41 people and injuring 121.
He said there were eight accident-prone areas on the Cox’s Bazar section, four of them in Chakaria, where accidents occur regularly.
He said the Highway Police had taken various initiatives to raise awareness among drivers and others concerned about preventing road accidents. Drivers were being provided with training, he said, while stressing that passengers and pedestrians also needed to become more aware of road safety. #EK
