More CNG scooters needed
I wholeheartedly support this letter (31.10.09). As an expatriate spending a considerable time every year in Dhaka I find looking for taxis whose drivers want to go where I want is a time consuming affair and often impossible. Baby taxi is a solution if it is readily available, the driver runs on meter without a grumpy face, and even happily plies short distances now covered by rickshaws. The minimum fare for baby taxis should be fixed in this light to encourage then move even short distances so that rickshaws can be slowly phased out, and car imports restricted. Refusal to ply short distances should be reported for heavy fines on baby-taxi owners. At one time Dhaka was only a city of rickshaws, some buses and horse drawn carriages.
Allowing import of baby taxis without any restriction, and fixing its minimum fare at a reasonable level will solve the problem of finding a transport for the middle class in greater Dhaka as it is now and phasing out rickshaws will alleviate congestion on the roads with faster moving vehicles.
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