Commuters in Dhaka have faced a shortage of public transport amid rains on Sunday, the first working day after the Eid-ul-Fitr holidays.
The number of buses plying the capital’s streets on Sunday was lower than usual, leaving passengers to suffer long waits for transportation made worse by intermittent showers throughout the morning, reports bdnews24.com.
Titu Miah, a government official, was speaking to the correspondent at the Shantinagar intersection around 7:45 am.
“This is a huge inconvenience. I’ve been waiting for a bus for about an hour. I couldn’t find any auto rickshaw from the ride-sharing apps either,” he said.
Baishakhi and Modhumita Paribahan are operating their bus services but those are running late, said Mushfik, a university student who needed to go to Mohakhali from Shyamoli. The buses are already overcrowded, making it hard to get on board, he added.
The Eid vacation ran from Jun 4 to Jun 6, with Jun 2 being a holiday for Shab-e-Qadar. Those who managed to take leave on June 3, enjoyed a nine-day holiday, including the weekends prior to and after Eid.
Homebound journeys were comparatively smooth this year due to the extra holidays before and after Eid and the lack of traffic congestions on the highways. Working people began to return to Dhaka on Saturday after celebrating Eid with their loved ones.
But the capital seemed to be suffering a holiday hangover on the first working day after the Eid holidays. Most shops remained closed while the street were mostly clear.
Many of the buses that run in Dhaka went to the nearby districts to make some ‘extra trips,’ said Idris Ali, a driver working in Akash Paribahan, explaining the scarcity of buses in the capital.
But those buses are on their way back to Dhaka and the situation will soon return to normal, he said.
