THE three-month deadline that the communications ministry set on Sunday for public transport operators to freshly paint their vehicles tends to betray the … government’s propensity for cosmetic solutions to systemic problems in terms of traffic management in … Dhaka.

According to a report … a meeting at the ministry … made the decision because ‘the city looks ugly’ because of old buses … plying the roads…. Such a … view seems to ignore the fact that it is traffic congestion … that is the major eyesore. Of course, the rickety and road-unworthy vehicles need to be taken off the road for the greater safety of road users…. However, a mere makeover of such vehicles is unlikely to help ease the traffic congestion….

As indicated, the government’s propensity for cosmetic solutions to intractable traffic management problems … is hardly surprising. Ever since the incumbents assumed office in January 2009, they have hopped from one experiment to another…. Moreover, the apparently reasonable decisions, such as phasing out … rickety … vehicles, have fallen by the wayside because of either resistance from the transport operators or lack of effective enforcement.

Experts have argued that effective and efficient enforcement of traffic rules … may bring some order on the roads and significantly ease traffic congestion.

However, if the government continues to waste time on cosmetic solutions, the systemic problems will never be addressed. Hence, instead of making sure that vehicles are freshly painted, the communications ministry will do better by focusing on the fitness of vehicles and drivers.— (May 29)