The familiar pre-Eid rush at Gabtoli Bus Terminal is missing this year, as passenger numbers remain low and long-distance buses leave with empty seats.
A visit to the terminal between 3pm and 4pm on Friday (20 March) showed an unusually quiet scene – no crowds at counters, no rush for tickets, and rows of buses waiting for passengers.
Most buses were departing with seven to eight empty seats, while ticket counters of major transport operators remained largely idle, with some staff sitting without work and others keeping their counters closed.
Fazlur, a counter master of Shyamoli Paribahan, said around 20 buses left for different destinations since morning, but none were fully occupied. “On average, each bus had eight to 10 empty seats,” he said.
He added that fares for the Kushtia-Meherpur route are Tk750, while tickets to Rangpur cost Tk870.
A bus scheduled to leave for Dinajpur at 3pm waited briefly due to a shortage of passengers. Showing the online booking data, Fazlur said only 16 out of 36 seats had been reserved, and the bus would leave with at least 10 seats vacant.
Passenger Abid Hasan said he bought a ticket to Jashore for Tk960 without any hassle. “I arrived at 3pm and got the ticket easily. In previous years, tickets were available at Tk800-850, but it was difficult to get one during Eid,” he said.
Transport insiders said buses leaving with empty seats is unusual ahead of Eid, when travel demand typically peaks.
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