Traffic signal system made spectator of total chaos

It is none but the traffic police who violate the automated traffic signal themselves in the city, which encourages drivers and commuters to disobey the rules.
The encouragement further comes from the total inaction of traffic police in stopping and penalising violators, especially public motor vehicles that stop to drop and pick passengers at traffic lights, block roads or park randomly, largely contributing to the city’s congestion problem.
Traffic police often even resort to risky and drastic measures to stop vehicles when the lights are red by blocking the way of running vehicles to stop them. They say otherwise drivers do not brake.
Talking to The Daily Star, Dhaka Metropolitan Police Commissioner AKM Shahidul Hoque also said, “People of our country do not have the habit of obeying traffic rules. They do not stop until traffic police take position in front of vehicles. So, how is it possible to follow the signalling system?”
All main intersections in the city–no matter with or without automated signals–are controlled manually at present because of excessive traffic. And in the control are untrained traffic constables and ansar members as sergeants mostly remain busy with filing cases against vehicles that break laws and collecting fines from them.
Movement of the VIPs also forces traffic police to ignore automated signals, throwing traffic management into disarray.
DMP Joint Commissioner (Traffic) Mohammad Shafiqur Rahman said, “Traffic signals are operated from the control room at Shahbagh where it is not possible to visualise the traffic situation on the city roads.
“Traffic police have to stay at the spots to control vehicles movement considering the flow of transport on different roads and routes. With the huge flow of vehicles on limited road space, it is hardly possible to follow the automated signal system,” he said.
According to sources of DMP and Dhaka City Corporation, the automated signals were installed at the city’s 68 strategic intersections in 2008 at a cost of Tk 25 crore to make traffic movement smooth.
The traffic lights keep on changing round the clock but are not followed at all.
“The traffic department has 2,200 members, including 750 sergeants. We have engaged the entire force and even hired 400 ansar men to control the traffic,” the DMP commissioner told The Daily Star.
He admitted that the ansar members are not trained in traffic controlling while DMP’s own constables are also not capable of dealing with the heavy rush of vehicles.
Talking to The Daily Star, a traffic sergeant said the existing automated traffic signalling system is fit for controlling vehicular movements from 10:00pm to 8:00am but to make the system effective during busy daytime hours, the time between signals has to be changed.
Requesting anonymity, another senior traffic official said, “A VIP needs 10 minutes to reach his/her destination, but traffic policemen have to keep the road restricted five to 10 times that time.”
According to sources, a high-powered meeting of the government on August 20 asked the DMP and DCC to adjust and update the timing of automated signalling.
DMP Commissioner Shahidul last week told The Daily Star: “We have requested the Dhaka City Corporation authority, which owns the signalling system, to take steps in this regard, but it is yet to be done.”
When contacted, DCC Mayor Sadeque Hossain Khoka, however, said he was yet to be informed of any directives.
Replying to a query, the mayor said, “We must do it considering the need.”
Meanwhile, the DMP is no more interested to renovate and update the automated system and is now busy setting up a new system called “command, control and communication system”, or 3CS in short.
Joint Commissioner Shafiqur Rahman said, “The new system with closed-circuit television cameras and dot matrix displays will help reduce traffic jam.”

Courtesy of The Daily Star