There is no let up in road crashes in the country as at least 80 people were killed and many others injured in the first 11 days after the enforcement of the Road Transport Act-2018.
The Road Transport Act-2018 began on November 17 with creating mass awareness on the law.
But reckless driving continued to take away lives on roads and highways everyday throwing the fate of the most of the victims’ family into sordid state.
Members of different law enforcement agencies assigned on country’s important roads and highways to ensure safe journey, are failing to control the desperate driving especially when night falls and the highway becomes empty.
When the RTA came into effect, the transport workers started a nationwide indefinite strike protesting the law.
Apart from the enforcement of RTA, the government, private organisations, different socio-cultural organisations, volunteer groups, teachers, students and people from all walks of life continued to raise voice against the desperate driving.
But all efforts to ensure safe journey on roads and highways, are going in vain as the drivers and staffs are becoming more desperate.
While this correspondent travelling on different national highways and roads recently, found most of the long-distance vehicles running with over speed.
In many cases when the highway police or other members of law enforcement agencies tried to stop the coaches or buses which were running with high speed, the drivers dodged them in many ways and made a good escape.
The owners, drivers and other staffs of long-distance buses, coaches, trucks, covered vans and minibuses have been repeatedly requested to reduce their vehicles speed. But they are not paying heed to the request.
The drivers and staffs even do not reduce the speed of their vehicles when speed breakers or bridges are approaching ahead.
As most of the highways remain empty, the drivers become desperate to running their buses, coaches, trucks, covered vans and minibuses with the highest speed that causes deadly road crashes.
In this regard, the Home Minister said at a press conference three days earlier the new law could not be implemented because of the complexity of the licenses, stressing strengthening of the BRTA.
Elias Kanchan, chairman of the Safe Roads movement, said transport owners force the government all the time, so the drivers' reckless attitude never changed.
If this law is not implemented, concerned people will become victims of road crashes, he added
Talking about the implementation of road transport law, Bangladesh University of Engineering Technology (BUET) teacher Dr Shamsul Hoque said, 'It has been more than a year since the parliament passed the law.”
"About 22,000 covered vans operate on the highways of the country, none of which has a license," he said.
The government has given the opportunity to invest tens of thousands of crores, now those who have invested in that business will not waste their money, he pointed out.
Therefore, Shamsul Hoque suggested that, the government should have rectified the mistakes made in the beginning with the opportunity to rectify them and then go to law enforcement. '
In this regard, columnist Abul Maksud said, transport owners were involved with the legislation process and the draft law committee. When the law is made, their views have been taken. Now they are encouraging workers to take to the streets. This double-standard behavior will never bring discipline on the roads.
Drawing attention of road accidents in the last few days, he indicated the purpose of enacting road transport laws has been reversed.
