“I can easily recall the days when I waited for hours to catch a ferry. Be it traffic jams or fog, strong current, submerged shoals or lack of navigability, different factors prevented us from crossing the river the Padma easily. But now we’re able to travel smoothly, thanks to the Padma Bridge.” That was the reaction of Sumon Hasan, a businessman in Dhaka who frequently travels to Shariatpur’s Zajira, when asked for his thoughts about the Padma Bridge.
Like Sumon, many southbound travellers were delighted at the prospect of travelling by road without the usual hassles and disruptions.
The journey along the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Highway up to the Mawa end of the Padma Bridge has been seamless for many travellers, adding to their festive cheer.
The customary scenes of travellers and vehicles jostling to board ferries at Munshinganj’s Shimulia jetty were conspicuous by their absence on Thursday. Not many launches or speed boats were seen carrying passengers across the fast-flowing Padma either.
Overall, the Padma Bridge appears to have made a positive impact on Eid holidaymakers, who no longer have to risk their lives to cross the mighty river.
Earlier, people travelling to the 21 disadvantaged districts in the south-western part of the country had to wait for hours at the jetty to catch a ferry during the Eid holidays. Now, they can cross the river in just over six minutes.
Harun, a resident of Dhaka, was on his way to Faridpur to drop off his wife and children at his in-laws’ place. He was returning to Dhaka in the afternoon. Before the Padma Bridge’s opening, Harun wouldn’t even think about stepping out of his home in Dhaka during the Eid holidays. But now, he says he can travel peacefully.
“I’ve been travelling on this route for the past 27 years. This year’s journey has been quite exceptional. The entire trip was free of any trouble. I can’t believe how smooth it was,” said Mannan Sheikh, who was travelling to Bagerhat.
Journeys to the country’s south were punctuated by deaths of patients, mothers being forced to give birth on the road, or students missing their exams while waiting for a ferry to cross the Padma River.
People living on both sides of the Padma had to witness many such unfortunate incidents. But now, the banks of the river are turning into entertainment and tourism hubs.
There were no snarl-ups at the toll plaza in Mawa. Authorities are collecting tolls for the Dhaka-Mawa Expressway at the Dhaleshwari Toll Plaza in South Keraniganj.
Besides, Ansar personnel along with police are also on duty at the toll plaza and one of their main tasks was to keep motorcycles off the bridge.
It didn’t take much time to pay the toll on the highway or the Padma Bridge, said Ramiz Talukdar, a driver of Dhaka-Madaripur Paribahan bus.
There are no crowds at the toll plaza, but the authorities have taken measures to deal with mass gatherings during the Eid holidays, said Nur Islam, chief of the expressway toll plaza.
“We’ve opened two more booths at the toll plaza on Friday. We hope that people will be able to travel without any trouble during the Eid holidays.”
“All measures have been taken to ensure safe travels during Eid. The Padma Bridge, which is a dream project for us, has now turned into a reality and an emblem of the nation’s pride. As many as 220,600 vehicles crossed the river via the bridge in the last 11 days and the government earned more than Tk 242 million in revenue,” said Alamgir Hossain, chief of North Padma Bridge Police Station.
