Kazirhaat-aricha ferry service: Truckers’ suffering continues

Disruption in ferry services on Kazirhaat-Aricha route continued for weeks due to the cold wave and dense fog that sweeping across the country for the last couple of weeks.

Meanwhile, due to the situation many truckers and their helpers were compelled to wait at Kazirhat Ghat, dedicated for ferrying goods-laden vehicles, for a few days.

Though ferry operations on Kazirhaat-Aricha rout was badly disrupted for nearly two weeks till a few days back due to the dense fog and continuous cold spell, the situation has improved a bit in the last two or three days, BIWTC officials said.

For nearly two weeks dense fog prompted the authorities to suspend ferry services on the route for five to eight hours during the night, but currently they are continuing the service like before but in a slow pace due to poor visibility, the officials added.

Trucker Nahid Hasan, who started for Dhaka from Chuadanga, said they prefer to use Kazirhaat-Aricha rout as it not only saves about 100 kilometres distance, but fuel cost as well.

But the smooth journey has become a miserable one due to lack of proper management by the authorities concerned, he said, adding that truckers from northern and part of some southern districts use the route in order to ease the pressure of heavy loads on Bangabandhu Multipurpose Bridge.

Though most of the truckers use this ferry ghat, there is no terminal or parking facilities for trucks, said trucker Surujjaman, who was travelling from Burimari Land Port.

Sometime they are compelled to stay at the ghat area, but no security measure visible for them or their vehicles, he added.

Foysal Hossain, manager of BIWTC's Kazirhaat regional office, said they have been operating four ferries for carrying goods-laden trucks through the Kazirhaat-Aricha rout.   Usually, they carry 270 to 280 trucks by 15 to 16 trips using the four ferries every day, but at present many trucks remained stranded on the ghat area as they hardly can operate only 8 to 10 trips that ferries about 150 to 180 trucks.