Traffic

Yesterday it took my driver one hour and 55 minutes to go a distance of about five miles, from the office to the Green Goose Hotel (my home away from home).  [Note: yes, it was Sunday, but that's the way a lot of these Muslim countries roll.  The work week is from Sunday through Thursday.]  Now, you would think that, since this works out to an average speed of 2.5 mph, and humans can usually walk at between 2.8 to 3.4 mph, it would be more effective to walk.  However, there are few functioning sidewalks here, and those that are nice and smooth are usually used by motorcycles; the ones that aren't used by motorcycles are usually the homes of street people.  Of course, one could do what the locals do and walk on the roads, but not only do you run the risk of being run over by cars, tuk-tuks, and rickshaws, but in may places you may have to wade through sewage or other standing water.  And of course any western face is a magnet for the legions of beggars walking the streets.  All in all, I think I prefer sitting in the car for two hours.

Dhaka is a city of 16 million people, and even though the people here are very poor a lot of them still own cars.  Added to this are the countless bicycle rickshaws that clog the streets, as well as the motorized tuk-tuks (sort of a converted motorcycle with three wheels and a green cage for driver and passengers) that zip in and out between the cars.  To make things worse, traffic laws are generally not observed unless there is a policeman within arms reach.  Traffic lights, where they exist, are never turned on, and are essentially used for decoration.

View from my car yesterday

The road grid is also a big problem; side streets are generally just wide enough for two cars to pass each other if they fold in their side-view mirrors.  Even in the more recently built neighborhoods such as Gulshan, the streets are just not set up to use as alternate thoroughfares during heavy traffic periods (though people try anyway, to frustrating effect).

In all, it is a chaotic situation that makes for a frustrating commute.  At the moment it is the Muslim month of Ramadan.  This means for some reason that traffic is fairly light in the mornings.  It takes us about 20-25 minutes to travel from the hotel to the office.  However, businesses and schools shut at 3:30pm during Ramadan, due to the fact that everyone is fasting and therefore hungry.  Starting at 3pm, therefore, the roads become full of people going home.  At best we can make it back to the Goose in an hour; yesterday took considerably longer, due to the fact that it rained and therefore more people took cars than normal.

Of course, the beggars and booksellers do good business during these traffic jams.  They meander through the cars stuck in the streets tapping on windows begging or trying to sell the same dozen or so books.  Whenever they see me, the booksellers whip out their copy of the Walter Isaacson Steve Jobs biography; apparently it's a big seller among us whiteys.

Bookseller displaying his wares.

I do have a solution for Dhaka's traffic problems, and it's based on three very simple steps that the government could easily implement with a minimal investment.  I haven't been able to get an audience with the Prime Minister to present my proposal yet, but I will tell you what it is:

1.  Establish a system of one-way streets on the side roads, so they can be used as fairly rapidly flowing alternate routes during high traffic periods;

2.  Install stop signs and traffic lights at intersections and instruct the public in their use;

3.  Implement exemplary, public executions (preferably by disembowelment) of people who break the traffic laws by failing to stop, cutting people off, making right turns from the left-hand lane, and trying to run over pedestrians.  Hang the bodies at the major intersections to push the point.

These simple, modest changes would, I think, see a return to civility and free-flowing traffic to Dhaka!