heading home for Eid seems to be continuing.

The traffic jam that had been intermittently created on the 25-kilometer stretch of the Dhaka-Tangail-Jamuna Bridge highway since early Thursday morning did not return to normal even at 8:30 pm.

Due to traffic jams on one side and rain on the other, ordinary people who are heading home for Eid are facing extreme hardship. Passengers in open trucks and pickups are suffering the most. In addition to buses, trucks, and pickups, private cars and motorcycles are plying on the highway several times more than usual.

Salauddin Mia, a garment worker from Bogra, a passenger of the truck, said that he boarded the truck at 7:30 am after not being able to find a bus and paid 500 taka. He has now reached Elenga bus stand at 3 pm.

Mallika Khatun, a passenger of Ajmeri

Gauri Transport who left Dhaka, said that she boarded the bus around 8 am to go to Sirajganj. It is now 2:30 pm. Due to traffic jam, she has reached Elengar Pauli.

Abdul Hai from Bogra said that due to the lack of buses, he is forced to take a pickup truck with his wife and two children to go home for Eid. Traffic jams and rain have further increased the level of suffering.

A passenger named Masud Rana, who was heading to Bogra, said, "I have to go home for Eid. The traffic jam on the highway is already causing a lot of suffering due to the rain."

A man named Mamun said, "I am going home in an open pickup with my wife and children. In the meantime, it has started raining. What else can I do? I am going home with papers."

Mohammad Sharif, in-charge of Elenga Highway Outpost, said, "Now, vehicles are moving slowly on the highway and are not stopping anywhere. Dhaka-bound vehicles are being sent from the roundabout to Dhaka via Bhuiyanpur. In addition, vehicles are being sent north on two lanes from Elenga to Jamuna Bridge."

Meanwhile, 38,555 vehicles crossed the

Jamuna Bridge from midnight to 3 pm on Thursday, collecting a toll of Tk 2.59 crore.

Jamuna Bridge Executive Engineer Ahsanul Kabir Pavel said that traffic on the bridge was disrupted due to the pressure of additional vehicles. Due to this, toll collection was suspended four times from Thursday morning to noon. Currently, traffic on the bridge is normal, but there is a lot of pressure from vehicles.

Tangail Police Superintendent Md. Mizanur Rahman said that more than 600 police officers are on duty to prevent robberies and ease traffic congestion on the highway. Army and RAB members are also working.