Traffic on the Chattogram–Cox’s Bazar highway resumed on Sunday afternoon after remaining suspended for nearly four hours due to a blockade enforced by local residents demanding road safety measures.
The protest, which affected several points including Lohagara and Chakaria, was staged to press for widening the busy highway to six lanes. Residents said thousands of vehicles travel along the route every day, yet long stretches remain narrow, steep and sharply curved, making it increasingly unsafe.
They added that at night, trucks carrying salt make the road slippery, heightening the risk of accidents.
“Overall, the highway has turned into a death trap,” said a local resident. “Accidents and injuries occur almost every day, and despite repeated complaints, authorities have taken no meaningful steps.”
Locals had earlier submitted memorandums to the Deputy Commissioner in April and to the Ministry of Road Transport and Bridges, urging immediate upgrades. With no progress in sight, they took to the streets on Sunday.
Authorities assured protesters that measures to widen the highway would begin soon, prompting them to withdraw the blockade around 1pm.
