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On a bustling Monday morning at Dhaka Metro Rail’s Bijoy Sarani Station, a stream of commuters, including Anu Akhter, lined up for their daily transit.
Anu, a resident of Mohammadpur and an employee at a private company in Shahbagh, is headed for her workplace.
She has altered her routine to include a metro rail journey from Bijoy Sarani, marking a significant shift from her previous two-hour, traffic-laden commutes, reports bdnews24.com.
Before the metro rail was launched, she used to spend over two hours commuting. Even then, traffic jams made it difficult for her to reach the office on time.
“Now, I can get to the office earlier, before the scheduled work hour at 11am," she said.
It took only 10 minutes for her to reach Karwan Bazar.
The station buzzed with activity, yet everyone seemed calm and patient.
Kaniz Fatema, a passenger heading to Dhaka University, bought her ticket through a digital vending machine. She said the worries of commuting have reduced, and the metro rail is a safe transport option for her.
"The metro rail has made travel much easier for me. I can go directly from Moghbazar to Karwan Bazar station and then directly to Dhaka University.”
Students and working women, who used to spend most of the day in public transports stuck in traffic jams on the streets, faced insecurity.
“Bus travel was always uncomfortable, especially at night. I used to get off before my destination if there were fewer passengers. Moreover, I have faced verbal and physical harassment many times on buses,” said Kaniz.
“The metro's coach for women has made my commute much safer now."
Shireen Muntahar, an intern media professional who commutes regularly from Mirpur to Banglamator, echoed similar sentiments.
Choosing to disembark at Karwan Bazar or Shahbagh based on convenience, Shireen said, "Before the metro rail, taking a job was challenging because of traffic and insecurity in public transport. Now, I can return home during the day, making my commute much safer."
Before the metro rail launch, she sought online jobs. She said that with the metro rail service in operation, travelling feels much safer.
A significant portion of regular metro rail users include professionals and business people.
Ali Azad, who works in Karwan Bazar and lives in Mirpur’s Shewrapara, has benefited from the metro rail.
He shared, "I used to reside in Dhanmondi and had to depart by 8am to avoid traffic. Since the metro rail commenced, I relocated to Shewrapara.
"I board the train near my residence and alight close to my workplace. Now, I even have the opportunity to take my child to school."
Signs designating seats for women are always there on buses, but they are also taken by male passengers almost all the time.
The metro rail has designated a whole coach for women in every train. Women can also use the other coaches with their male co-passengers.
Unlike the buses, no men can travel in the women’s coach of the metro rail.
Iftikhar Hossain, General Manager (Operation) at Dhaka Mass Transit Company Limited, informed bdnews24.com that over 300 women can travel in one coach with sitting arrangement for 45.
"We have received a positive response from women since the launch of the metro rail.
“Particularly at night, the number of women passengers has increased after the route to Motijheel opened,” he said.
According to him, in the last two days, approximately 16 percent of the total passengers were women.
“Notably, during office hours from 8am to 10am and at the end of the office from 4pm to 7pm, we observed the highest concentration of female passengers."
Stations such as Uttara North, Mirpur 10, 11, Shahbagh, Dhaka University, and Secretariat experience substantial crowds of female passengers, especially during office hours and in the late afternoon when many women travel with their families, he added.
The demand for the metro rail is evident among commuters, with the maximum number of passengers using it in the last two days.
Around 250,000 people used the metro rail in these two days, generating an income of about Tk 16.2 million, according to Iftikhar. This marks a record for DMTCL.
At 1pm, the road near the Bijoy Sarani station had light traffic as many travellers were travelling by the metro rail overhead.
The road from Farmgate to Karwan Bazar, which usually faced traffic throughout the day, was surprisingly clear after 2pm on Sunday.
Although there were some congestions near the intersections, they were less severe than usual.
Similarly, from 3:00 pm to 4:00 pm, there was no significant traffic congestion at Bangla Motor and Shahbagh intersections.