Yet another deadline for counters of city bus service in Ctg

The deadline for launching counter system of city bus service in the Chittagong city has again been extended up to July 5.

This is for the third

time that the deadline

has been extended in

just one month on the different pretexts, including lack of preparation for the task.

Earlier on May 25, the Chittagong Metropolitan Police held a meeting with transport owners' associations where they decided to introduce the counter service by June 05 on all the city routes.

Later, the transport owner associations requested the CMP to extend the deadline up to June 25.

Sources in different transport operators said this time they requested the CMP to extend the deadline, pleading the transport strike in greater Chittagong from June 26 and lack of overall preparation for launching counter service.

The decision to extend the deadline up to July 5 came at a meeting held at the CMP headquarters Monday morning, with CMP commissioner Mohammad Abul Kashem in the chair.

The two-and-a-half-hour meeting was attended, among others, by deputy commissioner (traffic), CMP and transport operators of the city.

Faruk Ahmed, deputy commissioner (traffic), CMP told New Age that the deadline to launch counter service in the Chittagong city had been extended up to July 5.

'Transport operators requested the CMP to extend the deadline showing insufficient preparation and transport strike as the reasons. On July 5, the counter service be would be launched on 12 routes,' said he.

'There will be no extra fare. All transport operators will have to comply with the government-fixed fare,' added Faruk.

Abul Kalam Azad, president of the City Bus, Minibus, Human Hauler Owners' Association,

told New Age that the preparation for launching counter service was not completed.

'For the service, there will be about 150 counters on 12 routes. We will not charge fare going beyond the government-fixed rate and want to ensure minimum fare of Tk 05 with the launching of counter system in the city,' said Azad. 

A total of four transport owners' associations provide transport service on 12 routes of the Chittagong city.

Mentionable that the initiatives to introduce the counter service in the city were also taken two times — in 2003 and in 2008. But, due to the unwillingness and lack of co-ordination among the transport owner associations, the counter service initiative finally went in vain.

Source : New Age