A day-long design learning workshop titled “Safe Access to School” was held at the Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) auditorium, organized by the World Resources Institute (WRI). Under the Bloomberg Philanthropies Initiative for Global Road Safety (BIGRS) program, this training was conducted on November 9, 2024, to enhance the skills and capacity of DNCC engineers.
The workshop’s opening ceremony, held at 10 AM, was graced by Mir Khairul Alam, Chief Executive Officer (Additional Secretary) of DNCC, as the chief guest. DNCC’s Chief Engineer Brig. Gen. Md. Moin Uddin speaking as an honored guest. Superintendent Engineer Khandaker Mahbub Alam, BIGRS Initiative Coordinator Md. Abdul Wadud and Sufian Ahmed, Joint Commissioner (Traffic – Dhaka North) also shared remarks. Opening session moderated by Aminul Islam Sujon, technical advisor of Vital Strategies,
DNCC’s CEO Mir Khairul Alam said, DNCC is working to create safer city for everyone in its jurisdiction. In this regard, it is important to ensure safety on footpaths and roads. Therefore, DNCC is working with relevant government stakeholders to create safer footpaths and roads.
DNCC’s chief engineer Brig. Gen. Md. Moin Uddin said, DNCC started collaboration with the Bloomberg Philanthropies Initiative for Global Road Safety (BIGRS) from 2021. As a partner in this program, the World Resources Institute (WRI) is providing knowledge and technical expertise to support DNCC. Under this initiative, the road adjacent to Banani Bidyaniketan School in Dhaka has already been upgraded to be more pedestrian- and child-friendly. Additionally, a project is underway at Mohammadpur Bus Stand to ensure safe pedestrian movement and crossing.
BIGRS Initiative Coordinator Md. Abdul Wadud said, this particular workshop aims to develop design skills to ensure safe access to educational institutions for students of all ages by providing the City Corporation and its partners with the necessary infrastructure design skills.
During the lecture series of the workshop, WRI Assistant Consultant Arina Tahneem highlighted the importance of safe system approach to access to the schools in our country’s context. Architect and Urban designer Mustasim Mahmud Khan discussed the barriers to safe travel to schools, emphasizing that, “We need public transport over personal vehicles for safe student travel, designated pick-up and drop-off points, and secure infrastructure to facilitate walking from these points to the school gates are mandatory to enable the safe approach.”
In the primary lecture on design principles, WRI Sustainable Cities Program Consultant, Architect Farzana Islam Toma, explained the guidelines for developing safe school zone designs and the process for providing effective solutions. She noted, “We frequently hear about road crashes in front of educational institutes, but we often overlook the fact that safe design of infrastructures can significantly reduce these incidents. This workshop provided practical training on creating pedestrian-friendly designs, enabling DNCC and other partners to apply these methods to other educational institutions to create safe zones across the city.” Alongside lectures, the workshop included hands-on technical training where participants, based on the lectures, developed solutions for three actual sites. Forty-eight participants were divided into six groups to practice the design principles.
A total of 37 engineers from various DNCC regions participated in the workshop. These engineers are responsible for planning, constructing, and implementing projects across Dhaka North. Additionally, six officers from the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Traffic Division and five officials from the Dhaka Transport Coordination Authority (DTCA) participated. WRI Assistant Consultant Arina Tahneem, BIGRS Transport Coordinator Rezaur Rahman, and others supported the group design sessions.
The workshop was attended by Md. Golam Hossian, Enforcement Coordinator and Dr. Tanvir Ibn Ali, Surveillance Coordinator of BIGRS-Dhaka North and officials from DNCC’s Traffic Engineering and Public Relations division were present.
