All buses in city to be brought under Dhaka Nagar Paribahan

The interim government is planning to revitalise the ‘Dhaka Nagar Paribahan’ initiative, which was launched three years ago. A decision has been made to bring all buses operating in the capital's public transport system under its management.

This decision was taken at a meeting of the Bus Route Rationalization Committee (BRRC), chaired by Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) Administrator Nazrul Islam, who assumed the leadership of the committee after the change of government.

The meeting decided that while all buses will operate under the 'Dhaka Nagar Paribahan', their ownership will remain with the existing companies.

After the meeting, it was announced that applications are being invited from companies to operate buses under the 'Dhaka Nagar Paribahan'. So far, 80 transport companies have expressed interest, and 62 have submitted applications. Companies will have until November 30 to apply.

In response to a question about when the buses will begin operating, Nazrul said that applications will be accepted from bus companies until the end of this month. After that, the routes (starting and ending destinations) will be decided through the companies. Moreover, there is another meeting scheduled for December 11. Before the meeting, the committee will make its recommendations. Based on those recommendations, a final decision will be made and implemented.

He also said that to prevent competition among drivers and helpers, a rapid pass or online payment system will be introduced for bus fare payment.