Risky movement on rundown Bailey bridges

Decades-old Bailey bridges in Bandarban have become dilapidated because of overuse.  

Even regular repairs fail to stop them from wearing out as heavy vehicles ply the rundown bridges every day.

More than 150 Bailey bridges were built on eight important roads in the district about four decades ago.

Although the bridges were built temporarily after the Liberation War, they are still being used.

Bailey bridge is a type of temporary bridge constructed with truss steel for quick assembly.

The Roads and Highways Department has identified the bridges as dangerous and risky.

The bridges in different upazilas are more vulnerable than those in the district town.

If the bridges are not built afresh, fatal accidents may occur any time, snapping road communications in the district. 

Some 13 Bailey bridges on a stretch of 48-kilometre road from Bandarban to Ruma upazila have turned very hazardous for use.

During a visit, passenger-vehicles were seen crossing a rickety Bailey bridge over Tarachha canal on the Ruma road with risk.

The middle part of the wooden deck on the bridge has become very old. Half of it has developed cracks. 

All passenger vehicles were crossing the bridge with caution. It appears that the movement of loaded trucks through it is riskier.

Lalthan Bom and Uchnu Marma were returning to Bandarban town from Ruma by a motorcycle. 

They said using the bridges in the dry season is less dangerous. 

But it becomes risky to use the bridges in the monsoon when mud and stones slide from the hills and heap up on the bridges, they added.

A bus driver named Sujan Majumder said, "We need to use the Bailey bridges with utmost caution."

Every monsoon, one or the other Bailey bridge collapses, snapping the road communication.

He said some bridges are even unfit for repair.

Going up to Kaikongchhiri through the Ruma road, there are five to six very risky Bailey bridges. 

Sandbags have been put under wooden decks of some Bailey bridges to prevent them from caving in.

Every day different types of vehicles ply the bridges amid risk. During the monsoon, vehicles remain stranded for a long time as mud deposits on the bridges, much to sufferings of commuters.  Accidents also occur frequently during the time.

Drivers and passengers described their sufferings while using risky bridges.

They said only repairs will not work anymore, the bridges require reconstruction.

In the rainy season, one or another bridge collapses.

A trip from Ruma to the district town – which is supposed to take two and a half hours – takes four to five hours now.

Basu Karmaker, a trader at Ruma Bazar said, "If the road communication is halted for some reason, we have to use the Sangu river route as an alternative. It takes more time and costs extra."

As a result, the prices of commodities in the market go up, he added.

According to the Roads and Highways Department, some 51 Bailey bridges from the district town to different upazila roads are very risky. 

Of them, 13 are in Ruma, five in Roangchhari, five in Thanchi, five on Lama-Ali Kadam road, five on Chandraghona road, five on Rangamati road and 13 others on other roads in the district.

When contacted, Mohammad Selim Azad Khan, executive engineer of the Roads and Highways Department, said there are 76 bailey bridges in the district.

They have sent a letter to the ministry concerned, seeking an allocation for soil tests and turning the bridges into girder ones.